


eBay packages come in many sizes

by Kondork



Category: Sally Face (Video Games)
Genre: Consensual Sex, Drug Use, F/M, High School, M/M, Marijuana, Polyamory, Smoking, i dont know what im doing and i havent really ever posted here, so please forgive me if im doing something wrong
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-25
Updated: 2021-02-25
Packaged: 2021-02-27 19:34:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 34,841
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22901029
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kondork/pseuds/Kondork
Summary: Summer has just hit Nockfell and the gang have found themselves rather split apart. Neil and Todd have gone on a little vacation down south for a month, Maple and Chug have just bloomed their relationship, and that leaves just Sal, Ashley, and Larry with almost nothing to do in the small town. Well, almost nothing to do.
Relationships: Ashley Campbell/Larry Johnson, Ashley Campbell/Sal Fisher, Ashley Campbell/Sal Fisher/Larry Johnson, Chug/Maple (Sally Face), Sal Fisher/Larry Johnson, Todd Morrison/Neil
Comments: 76
Kudos: 127





	1. summer boredom

**Author's Note:**

> okay so... this is the first thing ive written in a really long time. i usually stick to drawing shit so this is kinda far left for me. if you like it leave a like (kudos?) and leave a comment for things i need to improve on. like tagging, for instance. i dont know what im doing so any and all help is GREATLY appreciated.
> 
> anyway, tdlr of this chapter is they go on ebay and find some shit ashley found earlier that week. and yes- ebay. im rewinding time yall and going back to 1995 yall! i did my homework and its a year off from when they're 17 but it fit close enough, so we're winging it. also i did not live during the 90's so i will not be using 90's slang other than probably larry obsessing over dunk-a-roos and fundip

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> added 6/12/20: art for this chapter!  
> https://www.instagram.com/p/CA6ebmIlecc/  
> https://kondorks-art.tumblr.com/post/619765735910260736/drawing-of-the-first-chapter-of-my-fic-ebay  
> be sure to follow me on social media to see art early!

Nockfell summers were starting to get horribly unbearable to the gang. It wasn't just the heat, however. It was the humidity, lack of nearby bodies of water, and lack of  _ things to do _ in general. The gang, which consisted of two main dumbasses, two smart dumbasses, and three bystanders that  _ encouraged  _ said dumbasses, were oh so eager when junior year of highschool came to a fresh close. Maple and Chug had recently started dating and were getting more serious, which meant two of the bystanders were off doing their own thing now. Todd and Neil, who had dated for two years now, were planning a trip together down south to some sort of robotics convention. And that just left the two main dumbasses, Sal and Larry, alone with one bystander who.. was  _ smart  _ but she wasn't going to tell them NOT to try and do a backflip off her garage. The three were a duo of chaos and no one could deny that, that's for sure. Without Neil keeping them somewhat in line, lord only knows what could happen.

With four people out of their usually large seven-person group, it did leave way more open to them. For example, they could all comfortably fit in Lisa's pickup truck that could only fit seven people. No more sitting on each other's laps and/or sitting in the back with no seat belts. Or seats. Sal Fisher could now easily fit in the middle seat with a seat belt nice and snug around his middle and diagonally across his body. Man, when was the last time that happened? Usually he had to sit on either Ashley or Maple's lap since the guy was the tiniest. But now? He was living in the life of luxury with his own seat between his two friends. 

Despite being just three of them, no one exactly wanted to admit they weren't missing the other four. It was only two weeks into summer break and they hadn't heard too much from the love birds, but they were just happy Neil, Todd, Maple, and Chug were spending good quality time together. Yes, the three did miss the laughs and going out late into the night with all seven of them, but having a small group like this was just more manageable and easier to find something to do that they all  _ wanted  _ to do. Since they all liked video games, they would go to the arcade quite a bit and just hang out and buy some grossly over-cheesed nachos. Or go two hours out of the way to Lake Ontario, something all seven of them couldn't do without getting pulled over. Almost like seven teens in a three-seater is ” _ illegal”  _ or a “ _ safety hazard” _ , sheesh. Police are more uptight once the city limits sign of Nockfell is out of sight.

But what were the three doing now, one might ask? Well, when Lisa's A/C is on the fritz and barely blowing any cool air.. not much. To her benefit, Lisa was trying to fix it since she knew Larry used it and was a responsible driver ever since he got his permit. She didn't use the truck that much since she lived where she worked, but graciously had been letting Larry use it for years. Walking in the snow? "Fuck that." She once remarked with a snort, tossing the keys his way. "Just please don't crash it, babs." and it's kind of been Larry's truck ever since then. But with Lisa trying to fix the A/C, that really left nothing for the three to do except sit in the colder apartment that Larry resided in and complain about having nothing to do.

"We could-" Larry started, flicking his cigarette butt into the ashtray on his bedside table, "Head down to 7/11 and snag some slushies?"

"Larry. How many times do I have to tell you that includes  _ walking _ ?" Ashley groaned and pushed her hair out of her face. "We have all established that we don't want to walk anywhere in this heat. It was already hell getting over here, might I add."

The three were getting antsy at this point with nothing to do except smoke cigarettes or weed. Even then, Larry was the only one who did both. Ashely only smoked weed and hated the cigarette smell, while Sal didn't do either on account of his prosthetic and precious lungs. The bluenette had been comfortably settled in an oversized bean bag chair with his hands comfortably folded across his stomach. He had been listening intently to the conversation the two and ping-ponging his eyes back and forth as each spoke up and suggested something. He had quipped in a couple times with something stupid to get a laugh, but other than that.. they were all mainly out of ideas.

"We could try to wax Larry's chest again." He hummed out the suggestion, tapping the chin of his prosthetic. "Has that grown back yet Lar?"

"No. It has not." Larry stuck his bottom lip out in a pout, eyebrows furrowed as he crossed his arms over his chest. "And I don't want to even it out. If you want to wax something why don't we wax Ash's legs?"

"Mm, sorry Lar-bear, already got you covered. Pristine and waxed yesterday. You're such a cry baby, it isn't that bad." She snorted, letting her so-called pristine legs drape over the arm of the computer chair she was seated in. Sal couldn't help but stare for a moment, but at least she didn't notice it.

"Your hair isn't fuckin' long Campbell! And I'm a man. Men have hair on their chest."

"What about me?" Sal chimed in.

"-Most men have hair on their chest. You're almost there buddy." Larry shot him a lopsided grin.

Ashley couldn't help but laugh yet again. "You're both men alright. But Sal isn't hairy at all. I wanted to wax him but he doesn't have any hair."

Now two pairs of eyes were locked on him, making his face flush underneath his prosthetic. Sal hit puberty, he swore it when they were both cackling a couple months ago when this whole waxing incident happened. His blue hair just turned up very light on his legs while Larry's naturally darker hair stuck out like a sore thumb all over his body. He waved both of them off, shaking his hair and nearly making his messy bun come undone.

"Okay okay, no more wax talk, I got it." Sal admitted defeat, waving the metaphorical white flag. "But we can't just sit down here all day, can we? We'll get blood clots or something."

"Stop trying to sound like Todd, Sally." Ashley hummed and swiveled around in the computer chair, now turned away from both boys in the room with her. "I doubt we'll get blood clots in our age just from taking one day off from walking around in this scorching heat." She tapped at the space bar a few times, leaning back as the password screen popped up. "Ooooh someone put in a password now?"

Larry's only had his desktop for maybe less than a year now. He had been saving up for one and ended up finding this one pretty dirt cheap at a yard sale just because there was a crack in the screen of it and that the keyboard it came with had missing keys. He just bought another keyboard, got a slightly better modem and- boom. Larry's got a shitty but functioning access to the internet that isn't his terrible flip-phone. All for the low low price of a hundred bucks, too. 

"Yeah, and I also created a profile for mom so she could do her taxes online 'n shit. And not see whatever i've been browsing." He scratched at his head before putting his hair up in a ponytail. "But I bet you can guess the password? You're pretty smart."

One attempt later-  _ SanitysFallRulez _ . Predictable. Both her and Sal were cackling about the password for maybe a minute before they were all crowding around the computer, curious of what Ashley was going to do on there.

"So, I found out something super weird about eBay."

"Other than the huge amounts of beanie babies on there?" Sal commented, leaning both forearms against the back of the computer chair.

"Well- yeah." She brought up the search engine and went to the main page of the common place to sell garbage on. "But you can find actual  _ sex stuff _ on here."

Well, that surely got both boy's attention. Sex stuff? That was one way to get them to listen. They instantly began being curious about what kind of stuff was being posted on this site. People offering sex like prostitutes? 'Sex stuff' isn't exactly specific, but they let their minds waunder for a moment as Ashley's painted nails clicked along the keyboard and typed in something into the search bar they weren't paying attention to. With a press of the enter key, there were dozens of 'sex stuff' on the page. Panties, lacy bras, actual sex toys.. it made the boy's eyes bulge out of their heads.

"Woah woah- Ashleeyyyy~" Larry cooed out, grabbing the mouse to scroll down. "Now how did you find out about this?"

"I need bras, dumbass. I was searching for sports bras to see if I could find one here instead of going out to the mall with my mom for one. I hate doing that."

"We could always-"

"-No, we are not going  _ bra shopping _ together, boys."

The two mulled in their disappointment for a few seconds before re-focusing on what was on the screen in front of them. It was all so exciting and stuff was so funny on there. Who would want clamps on their nips that looked like jumper cables? It was mostly freaky stuff, but Sal did spot something as Larry was scrolling down.

"Woah- go up go up-" He pawed for the mouse, trying to guide Larry's hand.

"Wh- what? Did you see something you liked?"

"Go up three rows, please?"

Larry hummed out a little chuckle, scrolling up and spotting what Sal was so interested in.

There in the pixelated preview was a mask. Not like Sal's prosthetic, no, but something the blue-haired teen was definitely interested in. It was made of leather and black, two holes for the eyes and one for the mouth. Though the one on the mouth had a zipper that could easily be zipped up.

"Larry-"

"On it."

Sal was practically glued to the screen when the image got bigger. He didn't find it sexual at all, he just found it  _ cool _ . Everyone in their friend group knew Sal loved masks that weren't his prosthetic. Well, he should only be wearing his prosthetic for obvious reasons of keeping his face properly protected against bacteria and all that, but the guy had four or five littered around his room that he also liked to wear around. This mask, kinky as it may be, would be a perfect addition.

"Sal please tell me you don't want this." Ashley looked over to the bluenett, eyebrows furrowed.

"...."

" _ Sal- _ "

"Ash it's super cool."

"It's for BDSM!"

"Not like I care." As if he knew what that meant.

"I think it looks pretty fuckin' cool." Larry chimed in. "Plus I mean, with the zipper he could unzip it and eat without having to take the whole thing off. So  _ inconsiderate _ , Miss Campbell." He faked teased, grinning all the while.

The leather zip-up mask wasn't the only thing they found that piqued one of their interests. There were a couple pages of stuff for them to look through and pretend to just find 'interesting' when, in reality, the teen's heads were spinning. They spent a good half an hour on those pages when the apartment door opening and closing caught all three of their attention. Ashley covered it quickly, closing out of all _ twenty seven _ tabs they had open of kinky sex shit. By the time Larry's mom had walked in, it just looked like they were trying to fix something in his computer settings. Nice save, Ashley.

"Hey, kiddos." His mom greeted him with a smile, leaning against the doorframe. "I know you three hate being all cooped up down here, so I got the A/C working again." At that news, Larry immediately went over and squeezed her after planting a big ol' kiss to her cheek, thanking her profusely. Though he didn't get too far before his ear was yanked gently.

"You need to take better care of that truck Larry. I mean it. If that thing gets too fucked up I can't help you get another and you'll be stuck without a car. Understand?" Ouch, tough love. But Lisa did have a point. It was the only truck between both of them and needed to be properly taken care of so it could last a long time.

"We'll make sure he's treating it like his own kid, Ms Johnson." Ashley quickly butted in, smiling reassuringly at his mom. 

"Yeah- we promise Lisa. I mean Larry does take really good care of it. Not a scratch on it anywhere." Sal backed him up as well. If Larry didn't have a car, that meant _ no one _ in their friend group had a car. They all made sure to be easy with it when they weren't cramming seven kids into it.

"Mm.." She clicked her tongue for a moment before letting go of Larry's ear. "Alright, you kids got me convinced. I have a couple errands I need you to do. Go to the store for me, will ya?"

Ashley was quick to jump out of the computer chair, excited for something to do. They hadn't done anything all day pretty much and they were all just as eager to be given a task, even if that task was simply going to the store and getting some stuff for dinner tonight. While Sal and Ashley were already piling out of the room and slipping their sneakers on while Lisa trailed behind to give them the list, Larry stayed back and slinked back into his room. Sal noticed this and tilted his head.

"Hey, Larry Face. Where’re you going? You're our driver, dude." Sal then knelt down on one knee to start tying up his shoes, letting muscle-memory do the work for him while his eyes stayed trained on the now empty doorway to his friend's room.

"Just turning my computer off dude. It takes a second to shut down."  _ Click, click, click _ . A couple minutes later, Larry's joining the two eager teen's in putting his shoes on.

"No pissing off the owner of that store again. I don't want to drive out of town just to buy groceries, alright? Be good you three."

And they were off like bullets, heading out of the apartment door and going the short distance to the elevator. Neither Sal nor Ashley thought to question why it took Larry such a long time to shut down his computer since they were so excited to get out and do something without melting in the heat.

But let's just say the 'add to cart' button was mighty helpful recalling item you want to buy at a later time.


	2. sleepover

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The trio head to Nockfell General Store, eat some baked mac-and-cheese, and then sleep. A super eventful day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR THE NICE COMMENTS! The comments on the last chapter really struck home for me and made me want to write more! I'm glad there's so many actually enjoying the story thus far! I created a plot outline for this and everything. Don't worry, not all chapters are going to be this boring. Salashlarry plot thickening next chapter!
> 
> edit 7/8/2020: art for this chapter!  
> tumblr: https://kondorks-art.tumblr.com/post/623123838125932544/banana-boy-this-is-art-for-chapter-two-of-my  
> instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/CCZZGlPFsn4/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

So many things to look at in a grocery store.. well, maybe any  _ other  _ grocery store. Nockfell General Store was just as bland as its name. It had a produce department and even a built-in deli counter, sure, but that was really it. Around eighty percent of the stuff sold was processed and sold in boxes or plastic. Lord only knows where Nockfell General Store got their so-called 'fresh' fruits and veggies. Or their deli meat for that matter.. However, it was the only store in town that wasn't connected to a gas station, so this is where people could easily get their groceries. One could drive west to the Syracuse Upstate Market or east to the Save a Lot for insane discounted shit, but who the hell wants to spend  _ that  _ much gas money? Even if this place had the worst yellowed fluorescent lighting, odd stains on the old tiled floor, and almost no decor unless a holiday was around the corner, it was still convenient. It was adequate enough for three teens, anyway/ Especially when one of them had an employee discount. 

Yes, Sal worked at the terrible grocery store, sue him. He would work during the school year a few days out of the week, but it wasn’t like it mattered if he worked on a school day since he performed his job at night. Sal wasn't a cashier or, god forbid, a deli worker. As much as he would love to work with Chug in the deli, it was all too gross for him. Instead, Sal had the pleasure to restock shelves. It wasn't that hard to do and he liked how mind-numbing it could be. Another advantage was that it was at night, meaning there weren't as many people around asking him questions. If they did have a question, he could surely help them figure out where a certain product was along the aisles, but he enjoyed the peace and quiet. It was a simple job that paid $4.80 an hour, so he was pretty content where he was at the moment.

It really didn't take long for the trio to end up in the aisle with the small selection of frozen pizzas, Larry picking out three before depositing them into Sal's awaiting lap/whole torso. He had flinched when Larry had pulled his shirt up a little before settling the frozen boxes on his bare skin, squirming and yelping in surprise. It caused the two brunette's to snicker and just pile more stuff on top of him. Well, at least they weren't getting a whole cart's worth of food and squishing him with it. Just some stuff for Lisa and themselves.

While they were slowly piling things on top of Sal more precariously as if he was a crude game of Jenga, Ashely piped in and draped her arms across the bluenette's shoulders.

"As fun as this is," She started, plucking a bunch of bananas off of Sal's head, "We should probably start planning and hatching things out, you two."

"What’cha mean Ash?" Larry pouted as the bananas were taken off his shorter friends head since he spent 45 seconds carefully positioning them.

"I mean- we all have different work schedules and it's just the three of us. Todd and Neil are fucking across the country for a month or something, Chug and Maple are being love birds for god knows how long.. It's just us guys."

"So what you're saying is to avoid another day like today where we find dumb shit on eBay, we should start planning stuff out?" Sal questioned, tilting his head so he could see the girl from the corner of his eye.

"Yeah, exactly! I have Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays off guaranteed, right? Maybe we can all aim to have the same days off. My work is pretty flexible since we kinda have a lot of people right now, so you guys just ask your bosses and I'll work around that."

Both Larry and Sal tapped at their chins for a moment in sync, questioning it all in their brains. They’ve really only met their big bosses once, and that was when they were hired. Actually, Sal was scared of his boss. The man was burly and owned the whole damn store. Whenever he saw him walking by, the man watch him with a hawk's gaze. It made the poor teen shudder when he was gone. How was he going to go around asking him for different days off? 

Larry wasn't having the same mental crisis that Sal was. He was just trying to remember his boss' name and his phone number. Asking for different days off would surely be a piece of cake.

"Yeah, we can totally do that." Larry nodded at his own words, leaning against the edge of the cart. "My schedule can be a little loose and all over the place since my co-worker quit a couple weeks back, but I'll see what I can do."

"Me too." Sal chimed in, nodding his head. "But if I have to work during the day to get different days off i'm not doing it."

"Perfect! We can make a schedule for maximum summer fun times." Ashley beamed, pushing Sal in the cart to bump Larry's hip, "Sucks that I have to babysit you two but I guess it isn't  _ so  _ bad.."

"Oh shut up, you love us." Larry cooed, finally snagging the bananas back to balance on Sal's knee instead.

Once they had bee-bopped around the store and practically unthawed the pizzas with how long they were in there, They piled all the groceries into the back of the truck in a couple big coolers (that doubled as seats) and went back to Addison Apartments. They didn't get too much, but there was enough to make dinner for both Johnson’s and the lone Fisher and Campbell. Along with snacks, of course. Lisa just loved cooking for her son's friends as long as it wasn't all of them all of the time. Cooking for two three is what she was used to, then down to two, but to suddenly jump to eight? Not even the best mom in the world can do that stunt. But tonight she was making the infamous 'Johnson Special', which was just homemade mac-and-cheese with enough cheese to make someone with lactose issues cry. Not to mention the crushed-up cracker top layer. It was heaven to Larry and it was heaven to his friends, too. By the time the trio reached the basement floor with at least a bag on each of their arms, they were practically drooling with how eager they were for the Johnson Special.

"Mom! We're back!" Larry declared after opening the door, nodding to the two other teens beside him to just set the bags on the table for now. "Can Sally and Ash stay for dinner tonight?"

"Sure! Just save some mac and cheese for me, alright kiddos?" Lisa called out from Larry's bedroom. It made him flinch at first, but realized she was probably just on the computer and not snooping around finding weed or cigarette stashes.

Of course they were going to save some for Larry's wonderful mom. Maybe. All jokes aside, Lisa was glad the kids liked her home cooking. Lisa Johnson was no chef by any means but apparently knew how to cater to stoner teens perfectly. It was also a fun activity since they would all help out cooking! Sal and Ash loved to help Lisa out whenever she cooked and Larry.. well Larry stayed on the side lines since his long hairs would sometimes show up in the food. And  _ no one _ liked that. Eventually, Lisa emerged from the bedroom and the three started cooking up dinner.

It didn't take too long for it to be ready since it was boiling and baking briefly, once the gooey, cheesy monstrosity was created, Lisa plopped a hunk on everyone's plate and let the kids dig in. And by god, did they dig in. Sal had to take his mask off to actually eat the messy dish, but it was always worth it. It wasn't as if the people around him hadn't seen his face before either. Everyone was just respectful and let the bluenette eat in peace without staring.

"So-" Larry started, diving his fork into the macaroni, pausing to talk without his mouth full, "I got a question mom."

Lisa quirked an eyebrow at her son. "You only ask THAT politely when you need something from me." She chuckled softly, leaning her elbows against the table. "All ears, sweetie."

"Okay so I  _ know  _ Ashley is a girl but could we MAYBE have a sleepover? Pleaaaase?"

Now, sleepovers were always fine with Lisa as long as things didn't get super noisy. If the kids wanted to be loud, they could always go out of the apartment and to the treehouse out back. But alas, every parent has rules, and poor Ashley and Maple were really two of the friend group that were targeted. No girls during sleepovers. It wasn't that she didn't trust them, it was.. Well. Okay, she didn't trust them. Lisa stared at her son, face-to-face with brown puppy-dog eyes that any trained professional might crumble at. 

And she herself crumbled, "Door stays open." 

With those simple three words, the teens fist-bumped the air and thanked her, saying they weren't going to be getting up to anything that wouldn't be mother approved. Well, maybe being fucking annoying at one in the morning, but that was fine.

And if they were going to do something risky, it would be when she wasn't home all together.

With their sloppy dinner finished, they all thanked Lisa and Larry tried to give her a cheesy kiss on the cheek just to be funny, getting his ass shoved away in the process with his mom cackling. Dishes were washed and set to dry, then the teens went back to Larry's room and kept the door open per Lisa's request.

"It's only seven, what should we even do?" Ash asked, resuming her previous position on the computer chair. "We could go back out on the town but it's still hot out.."

"What is it we could do down here, then?" Sal plopped into the bean bag chair and let his legs splay out. His prosthetic was still off and laying on his chest since he was trying to carefully get cheese out of his wounds.

Larry just tsk'd and started opening his middle sock drawer, going into the back of it to retrieve his baggy of weed from an old sock. "We could-"

"No."

Both Ash and Sal gave that firm answer in unison. The door was open and Lisa would be able to smell it. Does he want his mom officially knowing that he's the one with the weed? They all knew that answer was a big fat no, but Larry got pouty anyway and put the sock back in the drawer.

"I got nothing, then. Party poopers."

They just sort of let their brains drift in order to get some ideas going. At this rate they would have fun just sitting there not doing anything for the rest of the damn night since that's how things were looking.

Larry wanted some action movies, Ashley wanted to paint the boys nails, and Sal just suggested they do both. The two brunettes blinked before snickering softly and shrugging. It wasn't like the boys were unfamiliar with getting their nails painted. They've done straight black before to look edgy, but they might let Ashley have some fun with it if she so desperately wanted hot pink or some shit. It was settled; they would spend their Friday night watching movies and painting their nails.. how Golden Girls. Maybe they would sneak out once it got cool enough and go down-town for a little while, but who knows. Everything closed at around eight or nine in Nockfell because of how boring the town got at night. They were lucky if half the streetlamps would decide to flicker or turn on all the way, let alone find an establishment other than 7/11 open. 

"We should probably put like- pajamas on or something." Ashley commented, tapping her chin. "To get into the sleepover vibes, of course."

"You just wanna see my pecs." Larry snorted, walking over to his closet to toss baggy t-shirts and sweatpants their way.

"So what if I do or not!" She smirked, grabbing the clothes and heading off to the bathroom to change.

That just left Sal and Larry to the teen's bedroom, Larry already stripping himself of his shirt and tugging on sweatpants. Boom, instant sleepwear. From years of working for a landscaping business, Larry had no right to show off his muscles like this. It honestly made Sal jealous since he was still something similar to a twig, but.. he felt something else, too. Something he didn't understand when he looked at Larry. When he was a freshmen, he had no idea what it was about Larry that drew him in, but now as an almost-senior, he knew exactly what it was. Attraction. Larry was hot, he couldn't deny that in the slightest. His pale blue eyes would always carefully watch the other whenever he undressed in front of him here at the apartments or in the locker room at school. He wasn't trying to be creepy or anything. Jealousy is a form of flattery, right? He always thought he was being so sneaky about it, taking glances here and there to watch how Larry's freckled-skin moved on top of his muscles. 

Little did he know, the other stared at him in the  _ exact  _ same way. 

Larry loved looking at Sal and adored how petite his friend was. Sal was by no means sneaky with how he got glances at Larry, but Larry got eyefulls without the other even noticing. Oh, what Larry would give to just put his hands on Sal's hips and how narrow the other really was. There were some not-so-PG13 sketches of Sal tucked deep in his book bag when he was practicing anatomy and the teacher had reprimanded him for drawing porn in her classroom. Not porn! Just studying the body. Sal's body, anyway. In different positions.

Ashley came back a few minutes later while the boys were changed and stuck in their own horny thoughts. Larry's gaze snapped to her and he snorted. 

"I can see your underwear, nice purple- excuse me-  _ lavender  _ shade, Ms Campbell." Larry cooed, eyeing the girl up as she tugged up the sweatpants. Even though he eyed Sal up, he could just as easily admire a much more feminine form just as much.

"Shut up, not my fault you gave me the ones with no drawstring. Do you have a belt or something?" 

"I kind of need a belt too." Sal had piped up, trying to adjust his own sweatpants Larry had loaned him.

"You guys are just calling me fat now. I'm terribly hurt!" In reality, he’s in heaven. Seeing Sal’s hip bones  _ and  _ Ashley’s underwear? What a dream come true!

Larry had produced the strings from the top drawer, commenting how he never took them out but the dryer did if he forgot to tie them. Hell, even if he did tie them, they would sometimes just pop out. Damn things.. But Larry got the pleasure of kneeling in front of his two friends to jam the strings back in using a paperclip. He might have held onto them both 'for support', but he's just being a hornball.

He didn't get complaints from either of them.

When everything was tightened up and there was no longer any risk of exposed underwear, the teens went out into the living room to storm through the movies. Larry did have a semi-working TV in the corner of his room he didn't use that often. Where did he get it, one may ask? Behind the school. He just found the thing with a crack down the glass and decided that it was his. It wasn't stealing if someone was throwing it away.. right? Either way, they had to pick a movie to start off with. The Johnson’s had a lot of movies from the 70's and 80's, but nothing from the past five or six years sadly. They could rent VHS tapes, but they always forgot to return them. They just kept the classics and some not-so-popular ones the Johnson’s knew they liked.

"Let's watch Evil Dead. Or Hellraiser! Or Night of the Living Dead-" Ashley had plopped herself down on the floor as she sorted through the few horror options the Johnson's had.

"Ferris Bueller is really funny. Stripes, too."

"We aren't watching a comedy or a horror, c'mon." Larry commented, grabbing all the ones the two had been listing off. "We're watching actions first, at least. Action first, then horror, THEN comedy. So you two don't get all scared in the middle of the night."

"Oh, says the tough guy afraid of the movie  _ Gremlins _ !" Lisa yelled from the other room.

"I was  _ six  _ when you took me to see it, ma!" Larry yelled right back, huffing. Despite this knowledge, the shelf still did not have Gremlins on it to this day at the ripe age of seventeen.

Ash and Sal snorted while gathering other movies into Larry's arms while he had war flashbacks about seeing the oh-so-terrifying movie at a young age. It wasn't even that scary.. Little furry monsters aside, they got a shit-ton of movies for Larry to carry while Sal grabbed some of the snacks they had grabbed from the store. They just ate, sure, but it was good to have the stuff prepared and ready to go. Maybe they would make one of the frozen pizzas later, who knows. For now it was snacks and drinks.

It took a hot minute to get the ultimate movie set-up in Larry's room with the three crowded on the bed with the snacks. The TV and VCR were rather precariously set on top of Larry's moved 

night stand, but other than that everything was pretty much perfect. Larry was still complaining that this would be a lot better with a blunt in his hand, but he settled with a pouty lip between Ash and Sal. Ashley did snag some nail polish from the bathroom and gave Larry white French tips, but the stoner was still stupidly upset while Die Hard played on the screen.

"Earth to Johnson- are you seriously that pissed?" Ashley asked while blowing on his nails. "You can't be, your mom would freak if we were caught smoking weed in here."

"Treehouse activity exclusively." Sal added, leaned up against Larry's other side while admiring how pristine the tips of his nails were with white polish.

"I'm not pissed or anything. Annoyed, really. Can't a guy chill out with a lil baggy of mj?"

"Well, there's other ways to relax."

Both Ash and Larry raised an eyebrow at the bluenette, curious as to what else he was going to add to the statement. They had never exactly considered Sal to have much of a dirty mind, so really.. what could he be thinking about right now? I mean, what ways could one relax without weed or sex? They didn't get an answer from Sal straight away and curiosity was really starting to sink in. What was he thinking of? Once it was established Larry's nails were dry, he had Ash get up and stand on the other side of the bed.

Ashley stood there a little dumbfounded, curious of his plan. "Sally?"

"We're going to help him relax." He had a little smile on his face that could only be described as mischievous. Little devil, he is. "By wrapping him up like a burrito."

"Oh-" Ash copied the smirk, grabbing the edges of the blanket on her side, "You got it, chief."

Larry was protesting during all this, saying that he does not and WILL not be wrapped up in his blankets like a burrito. Him, Sal, and Todd had done that before and he ended up getting dragged down the stairs like that. He could still feel the bruises on his back from that day.. ouch. But before he knew it, he was swaddled up like a baby and a perfect burrito, the two culprits laughing and snorting at the sight.

"Very funny. Lemme out, you asses."

They did not, in fact, let him out. Larry stayed like that and he was fed chips like a horse. Sal was correct, though. Larry did eventually calm down from his withdrawals a bit. The horror movies didn't 'help' him calm down, but the comedies that followed suit eased all their minds. Around two in the morning was when they finally grew tuckered out and fell asleep, surprisingly content with the otherwise uneventful day of going finding kinky shit on eBay, going to the store, and having a lame sleepover.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if you have some suggestions for summer fun times lemme know in the comments! i live in a place where summer time doesnt exactly exist so im curious on what summer activities other people do besides staying in where the AC is at and going to the beach


	3. caught

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sal finds out about the things that Larry had saved on his eBay and is unsure of what to think about it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Make sure to check the end of the chapter when there's a word you don't know with a * next to it! Thought it would be helpful since I'm assuming not a lot of us had access to the internet in the 90s..
> 
> edit 9/6/20  
> art for this chapter!  
> insta: https://www.instagram.com/p/CEXvBf8FhvF/  
> tumblr: https://kondorks-art.tumblr.com/post/627557024289423360/whats-he-thinking-about-but-this-is-art-for

Everything would be fairly normal when the three teens woke up the next morning. They would have breakfast, hang out for a little bit longer, then one or more guests would have to leave for the day. That's the usual protocol for sleepovers, anyway. Even though Ashley didn't have to go to work Saturday, her family would most likely like to know where she had been for the night. Ah, shit. She hadn't told them, had she? Luckily for her, Lisa had gotten a call and, well.. Her parents weren't too happy on her having spent the night with two boys. Hopefully she isn't grounded or anything. So needless to say, Ashley raced out of the house after putting on the previous night's outfit and throwing Larry's clothes back at him, giving Lisa a fast 'thank you' for dinner in the process. Larry was about to ask if she had wanted a ride home, but the girl was already out the door. Oh well.

When Ashley took off, it was just him and Larry. Even though Sal worked today, he didn't have to go in until around four in the afternoon anyway, so he had time to kill. 

While the two were munching on their off-brand cereal, Sal's brain couldn't help but veer to last night. They had fun, certainly, but he just couldn't be rid of the feeling he had when he watched Larry undress. I mean- it was one thing to have a crush on your friend. But two of your friends? It's a bit excessive now, isn't it? How hormonal could possibly he get? Of course, Sal would never verbalize having any sort of crush on both his friends, but it's just a bit noticeable with Ash. With Larry, it's harder to tell. And Larry liking both his friends as well? It wasn't obvious at all. Most thought it was fake flirting or something, but never anything that could emerge from it.  But here they were, both thinking about the small frame of time where they were low-key drooling over one another when Ash had left for the bathroom. All the while they ate off-brand cereal. Funny how cornflakes are doing the _opposite_ of their intended job right now. Finally, someone had broken the slight awkward silence that had formed.

"Anything you'd wanna do today, Sally?" Larry quickly wiped away the milk dribble that went down his chin with his forearm, swallowing his mouthful. "I know you don't go in until late and I think I might go in around the same time. Could drive you, if you want." 

Sal had watched Larry spill on himself and usually he would laugh and make fun of him, but those dirty thoughts just kept coming back. He hummed in thought and just focused his eyes on his cereal in front of him.

"I dunno, we could go back onto eBay and find more cool stuff." He spooned at his cereal, the contents pretty damn soggy right about now. He took a mouthful anyway and was careful to eat it in a way where it wouldn't spill out from his marred lips

Larry tensed a little and shook his head no. "Nah, nah. So boring! Can't two guys think of one cool thing to do? We could head down to the arcade, see a movie maybe?" He had to try and sway Sal with something else. Anything but eBay..

"Mmmm.." Sal had noticed the tense and smirked a little, cocking his head to the side. "Nah. Let's do some eBay for a bit, man. Unless you're.. _hiding_ something?"

" _Tch_ \- me? Hiding something? No way. What would I even hide on there?"

"Not sure, but i'm curious about what else is on there. Wonder if we can find some guy's belly button lint collection."

They both gagged at the idea and collectively decided that wet cereal is far too similar to belly button lint and didn't finish their bowls. They instead went back to Larry's room with Larry in the computer chair, the teen clacking in his terrible password. Larry was a bit tentative to go onto eBay, since it would easily be noticed he had certain items in his cart. He hadn't bought anything, but he just wanted it to be a surprise! And he had a little 'plan' so to speak. Those kinky items they saw on eBay? Well.. he wanted to buy some of the ones Sal and Ashley had liked and maybe, just maybe, try to ask one of them out. Who would be more into it? He had no idea. His plan wasn't the best, so to speak, but it was a plan nevertheless! And he's sticking to it.

So he has to keep this blue-haired snoop off of eBay for a second.

"We could go to SITO*? Lotta cool artists stuff on there. Or MTV?" Larry suggested, opening up Internet Explorer and waiting the demanding minute and a half for it to actually load up.

" _Ooooor_ eBay?" Sal suggested, leaning against the back of the computer chair. "We could go to www.ebay.com, Larryface."

"C'mon we did that yesterday! Buzzweb**, maybe?"

"Buzzweb hasn't been updated in literal months, Larry. Stop grieving already. It’s dead." Sal sneered and let his head gently thunk against the back of Larry's. "C'mon, I wanna find that mask again. I doubt it's there still but it looked super cool."

"Still can't believe you find a gimp mask, of all things, to be 'super cool'." Larry sighed loudly, typing in 'ebay' in the Yahoo search engine and clicking the first link. He's preparing for the shame.

_ Ding! _

Immediately, he coughed and turned his head away. What was that ding? Well, it was letting him know that someone had bid for one of the items saved and it was no longer available. How tragic. But there were still items available with a red number nine in the basket. Sal's eyes went to this red number in the top left corner, gesturing at it with his hand.

"Did you bid on stuff?"

"No?"

"What'd you add to your cart, then?"

He had been dreading that question, moving his mouse oh-so sluggishly to the top of the screen to click on the shopping cart of saved items. Ah, the joke item of studded hair ties had been the item missing. Even came in a set of six, could have been three for each of them. Such a shame. But everything else was in the cart. Everything for Sal to see. Larry squirmed in his chair and kept his head turned to the side. 

"Why are uh- these in your cart?" Sal questioned, blue eyes flicking over the screen of the previews of familiar items from the day before. "You didn't plan on buying these, did you? That'd be like- three hundred bucks or something."

"Only 260 if I bid right." Larry corrected before backtracking a little, "I mean- if I bid on them. Still not sure if I want to or not."

"Larry why would you buy us sex stuff? For like- _prank gifts_? For next April or something?"

Larry scratched at the subtle stubble on his face, letting out a sigh and just shrugging his shoulders. He just told Sal he wasn't sure why he had saved them. He hated lying to the little guy, but he would kill to see him in panties and matching garter belt. Black, to be more specific. White was too pure. Red kinda clashed with his hair, too. He thought way too much about this yesterday afternoon while Sal and Ashley were finding items they liked. 

Sal was just standing there behind his friend, puzzled as he was looking from the screen and to the brunet. He.. hadn't exactly gotten a _clear_ answer from Larry, which only made him more confused about all of this. What is he supposed to do with this information of Larry having all this stuff in his cart? Some of this stuff could just be a scam, after all. He's heard of people buying things online and not getting what they paid for. Hell, Todd bought something in the mail and just got a box with some rocks in it to add some weight. Who's to say this won't happen to Larry? Some of this stuff is pricey! Especially the mask he wanted so badly at almost eighty bucks. Sal was skeptical about all of this and wanted to know so desperately what Larry was thinking about right now. But he chose not to push it. Instead, he just sighed and smushed his cheek against the corner of the chair, defeated.

"You're weird, dude. I won't tell Ash if you don't want me too, but I don't think you should get this stuff for us. Expensive and risky. Especially with parents."

"Don't want your daddy knowing you have another weird mask there Sally Face?" Larry teased, opening another tab and going to SITO.

"Kinda. Or panties. Not sure how he would react if I had panties but no girlfriend.."

"Probably not too keenly, my dude." Larry grinned back at him, "But yeeaaah.. just- Don't tell Ash, ‘kay? Just- wanted 'em to be a surprise and you ruined it. You always do, little snoop."

Sal snickered at that and hummed. He knew Larry was joking, but he was curious about a lot of things. He picked up social cues fairly quick, on Larry especially. It wasn't like his friend was obvious with them, Sal just understood him well enough to know what was on his mind. He had no clue what really was on his mind when adding all that shit to his cart. Prank gifts? Yeah right. There had to be some other reason.

Again, Larry had a plan. Not the _best_ plan, but a plan anyway. He's heard from the world wide web that people can be in two relationships at once and manage to make it work. And maybe he's gotten influence from some three-way photos that aren't too classy, but he would much prefer to keep that part to himself. He liked girls, he liked guys. Why tie it down to one? Not saying that he could have both, but if he needs to get sappy he sure as hell will. He's liked Ash for fucking years now. Then Sal moved in, and he quickly grew a crush on both of them. It isn't exactly all a hormonal thing. I mean. He is a horny idiot but not so much to ruin two friendships at once! He wants things to go slowly and, worse comes to worst, they can just all stay friends and act like nothing ever happened. 

His plan sucked, didn't it? 

Either way, Larry did his best to ignore the fact that Sal was onto him and knew something of his plans. He didn't know the specifics of it all since Larry hadn't said why he had all that stuff in his cart, but he knew they were there. That was just as bad as knowing his whole damn plan.

The two would spend the morning dicking around online and trying to contact either Todd or Neil on Aim***, but they weren't online at all. They were starting to miss the nerds of the group, along with Chug and Maple. Sal suggested he would try to head to the deli and see if Chug was working tonight since they often had similar shifts. Maybe if they chatted, they could hang out a bit? He and Maple have been pretty tied with each other. Good for them, but still.. _annoying_ in a sense. How does one say to their friends _'can you guys let us third wheel for a few hours?? We miss you!'_ without sounding clingy? But Sal would try his best and pick at Chug to get him to hang out a little. Then maybe in turn Maple could tell Ash the spicy gossip of dating life? Whatever girls talk about when they're alone, anyway. 

Later that day, Sal would head back to his own apartment to get ready for work. Shower, blow dry, sanitize his mask, all the fun things of working with the public eye. Again, he loved working nights. Not a lot of the public to deal with. Larry drove him to work afterwards, and they had the windows rolled down to let their hair blow in the breeze. It wasn't quite cooling down outside yet since it was only a few minutes until five, but it's always nice to let your hair do its own thing no matter how frizzled and messed-up it gets.

"So," Larry parked the car outside of the grocery store. His eyes scanned over the parking lot, not seeing the usual sea of car hoods filling every space available. "You promise you won't tell her, right?"

Sal had to think for a moment, head turning back towards his friend. Tell who what? _Oh_ \- the eBay thing. Right. It had slipped his mind for a while but now that curiosity is itching at his skull again. Thanks for that, Larry.

"No, I won't. Promise. But I just don't get it."

"What's not to get?" Larry slipped a pack of cigarettes from the cup holder, flicking one out and getting his lighter. "Just presents, right?"

"Weird presents. Usually presents are super thoughtful or a really cool _painting_ -"

"Stop trying to snag my paintings, you aren't being cute." Larry grinned, lighting his cigarette.

Sal huffed and furrowed his eyebrows. "What I _mean_ is that you usually give thoughtful gifts. Last year for my birthday you got me scar cream, dude. You got Ashley a part for her motorcycle she's been trying to find.." Sal rubbed at his neck, opening the car door. "I dunno how this is thoughtful in your head. I just don't."

Larry pouted at that, taking a drag from his cigarette and letting his arm hang out the window. He blew the smoke up towards the ceiling, watching the smoke flutter away and towards the open windows to filter out into the open area.

"You'll see. Alright?" 

Sal sat there for a few seconds before opening the door further and slipping out of the truck. He fell two feet to the hot pavement below. That answer didn't ease his interest in the slightest. It almost felt like Larry was hiding something from him. What could he be possibly hiding from him? The guy told him everything. It almost hurt to be not included in this. But, again, Sal let it slide.

"Alright, Larry."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *SITO was probably something akin to today's deviantART, but just back in 1993. I'm not super sure about the specifics of it since i'm not doing hours of research on one topic for a fanfic, but heres the link for anyone curious (since it still runs!) https://www.sito.org/  
> **Buzzweb was site that had a lot of articles related to alternative music even though I think they stopped publishing things in 1994. Larry's a metalhead for sure, but he most certainly likes other kinds of music. And old articles about them, apparently.  
> ***If you seriously don't know what Aim is then you are a baby. It's pretty much skype minus the video call/chat feature. If you're a homestuck fan, think pesterchum
> 
> A/N: Keep in mind I was born in 2001 and I was not alive during eBay or Yahoo 1995, so I have no clue if eBay then is similar to eBay now. And no one uses fucking Yahoo these days, let's be honest with ourselves here. And also, in this period of time where COVID is affecting many families and businesses, my heart goes out to you guys and I hope everyone reading this stays safe. I myself am an essential worker, so my apology if chapters are few and far between. My goal is to do at least one update a month! if you would like to stay updated with me, head to my instagram @kondorksart since i post to my story fairly often


	4. fun times at the mall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ash gets herself un-grounded and heads to the mall with her two favorite boys. Though, the trip doesn't go exactly as expected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just so you guys know I will be slowly drawing fanart for the chapters! former published chapters will slowly have art attached with them as updates come out, so be sure to go back and look for those! (NOT WITH THIS CHAPTER UPDATE!!! no art is made yet!!)  
> And also, thank you guys so much for the support! I haven't written anything in years and it's very fun to write with a small audience. thank you all for supporting my writing! if you are curious about my art, something i do MORE than once a month, be sure to check out my links!  
> tumblr: @kondorks-art  
> instagram:@kondorksart  
> twitter: @KondorkTheGreat
> 
> edit 9/6/20  
> art for this chapter!  
> insta: https://www.instagram.com/p/CEcIzjclG0d/  
> tumblr: https://kondorks-art.tumblr.com/post/627710952424521729/ashley-blinked-looking-down-at-the-album-and-back

It was kind of expected that when Ashley got home she would be in deep shit. Though the question was how deep was said shit? Needless to say, shit was knee-deep. Not only was she grounded for two days, but she also got her phone taken away. She could have been dead by her parents' hands for all the boys knew. They didn't dare stop over. Larry had tried convincing Lisa to call her parents and assure them nothing bad happened, but she said it was out of her hands. That much was true, Ashley isn't her kid, after all. They could only imagine the torture that was being grounded in the Campbell home.

It wasn't too bad.

Ash had raced home as fast as her legs could carry her, bursting through the door so out of breath and so sweaty that her parents were borderline concerned before going back to standing their ground. Cue the lectures.

_ "Ashley Louise Campbell" _

Oh god, the dreaded middle name..

_ "Just what in the world kind of stunts are you trying to pull??" _

_ "You don't call-" _

_ "Or text! Your father's been getting good at texting!" _

_ "We had no idea where you were! We were worried sick!" _

Now that the worries were out of the way, time for what this is really about.

_ "And a sleepover- with two BOYS??" _

Ashley sat through it all and didn't even try to interrupt and defend herself. She explained that she trusted Sal and Larry, and they didn't try anything at all last night. The worst thing they did was that they stayed up late and ate junk food. Even with that trust, she still landed herself grounded. Damnit. No phone, no computer, and no hanging out. The only time she would be getting out of the house would be going to work for the next couple days. But really? That was it. She didn't know what the boys had in mind for her being grounded, but it was just a lack of social events for a few days. And here Larry thought she was going to get her arms torn off or something, silly him. 

It was still two days of being grounded, which fucking blows. She knew he had forgotten something, but hadn't known what it was yesterday. How could she ever forget texting or calling her clingy parents! Ash pretty much knew she was in the wrong here, something she rarely does with her parents, and accepted the two days with lack of hanging out with her two best pals. She assumed they knew she was grounded since by Monday morning when she got her phone back, there were no missed calls or texts. One from Todd, but he didn't know about anything going on, so he didn't count. 

After another brief duo lecture from her parents, Ashley warfed down some breakfast and raced upstairs to her room. She texted both the boys and gave them hell for getting her grounded. Not actual hell, of course. She knew they were just as innocent as she was in this whole thing. Forgetful dumbasses, they were. Almost immediately she got a text back from Sal since he's always up a bit early. And to save me and everyone else from 1997 texting, I won't include that monstrosity. 

Even without Larry included in the conversation, her and Sal were able to set up something before the boys headed to work that evening. It was evident that they had missed her and that was adorable. And Sal's way of texting immediately back right after she sent something made it even more clear. He's always so cute. Their plan for today was to head to the mall since Larry had heard of more Sanity's Fall merch being sold at some indie music shop. Plus, she could handle a few more CD's that aren't Queen and Green Day. Maybe some more variety would be nice. She kind of wants the newest Beck album. The metalheads hate some music she listens to since it isn't screamo, but she has seen them grooving to other stuff and pretending like its bad. Nerds..

After waiting a few hours and getting ready, Ashley headed out of the house and made sure to tell her parents where she would be before heading out. She met up with the two boys that were already hanging outside the apartments, Sal looking at bugs while Larry smoked on the hood of his truck.

"You two that bored, huh?" She commented, leaning against the side of the truck and pressing an elbow into Larry's thigh. "So bored that going to the _mall_ even sounds fun?"

"I like heading to the mall. Just takes a long time." Sal raised his head to look at the two, holding a small praying mantis in his palm.

"I hate it. Preppy jocks and cheerleaders hang out there like- _twenty-four-seven!_ " He cocked his head and did his best impersonation of a cheerleader, flicking his cigarette butt to the ground before smushing out the embers. He pushed some hair off his shoulder and nodded towards the truck. "Alright gang, pile in."

Sal had taken a moment to gently put the irritated mantis back into the grass before getting into the middle seat between Larry and Ash, buckling up and leaning back into the fake leather cover. The air inside the truck was hot and stale, hard to breathe for the two brunets but practically unbearable to Sal with his prosthetic on. The windows were soon rolled down and the old truck was rolling down the driveway.

The adventure to the mall wasn't that eventful. The radio station was tuned thousands of times before settling on a somewhat-staticy punk station. New York didn't have that many interesting stations this far west. Probably closer to the Big Apple is where all the interesting shit is. But their real adventure started as soon as they entered the Worth Center Mall. Sure, it was a Monday afternoon, but it wasn't expected that it would be as busy as a Saturday afternoon. Then again.. it was summer. A lot of teens didn't have too many plans and going to the mall was an easy time-waster. 

"Since it's a sea of freaks out there, this is the one opportunity you two shorties will have to cling onto my 6'3" ass. Make it count while it lasts." Larry looked down and grinned at his two friends, offering his arms out. 

"What would we ever do without you Larbear!" Ash snickered, looping her arm around Larry's after watching Sal just straight-up holding his hand. With the blank mask he looks like a damn toddler. Adorable. "Where to first fellas? My plan is the couple music places that are in here. Mama needs some new cd's."

"We could go to Blockbuster and try to get in the back area."

The two brunets whipped their heads around to look at Sal when he mentioned Blockbuster. They loved movies, yes, but Ash had just thought about how adorable he was holding Larry's hand. Now he's talking about going into the porn section of the store! It caused them to cackle for a moment and wipe tears from their eyes.

"Sorry babe, didn't work too well last time. You look like a four-year-old with how short you are." Larry ruffled Sal's hair with a lopsided grin. "But we can go to Blockbuster and pick out a scary new horror movie, how's that champ?"

"Shut up." Sal swatted at his hand a little and fixed his hair. They could both hear the smile on his lips, so it was safe to assume he wasn't actually angry. Reading Sal could be difficult to many, but they could read him like a book. "Let's go to the music store with the equipment in there first."

With a nod, Larry started weaving them through the crowd comfortably with his size and stature. And I mean- none of these people want to get in the way of a greasy-looking stoner with piercings galore and a resting bitch face that could kill. Larry could be very intimidating when he wanted to be, and now was the perfect time to use it so his friends don't get swept up with the crowd. With Larry's navigating, they were led to the music store in question with the music equipment in it. The store was small in question and smelled like weed and old plastic coverings for the CD's. There were shelves upon shelves of music of many varieties and time periods. Maybe not anything from earlier than the 50s or the 40s, but there were definitely some thrown in the mix. And along the edges of the store there were many instruments that one was never allowed to touch. You really had to convince the guy behind the counter in order to try something out. Sal had tried with an electric blue guitar and had sadly failed, now an empty spot hung in the window from where she once stood proudly. A true American tragedy. 

Once the trio were inside the store, the two shorter ones would separate themselves from Larry and go to wander about. Ashley made a beeline towards the rock and alternative section while Sal followed behind. He was always sharing music taste with Ashley while Larry gagged behind them. Larry did make him a metal head, but he liked some stuff she did. And they always had one thing in common: 

Fuck pop music.

Fuck Britney Spears, fuck the Spice Girls, and fuck Mariah Carey the most. They all had their catchy songs, of course. Songs Ashley couldn't get out of her head since she worked at a department store. The boys would see her mumbling the words to 'I Want it That Way' and would attempt to douse her in holy water. Sal had it no better, since the store didn't listen to pop but anything they could get their hands on. 'Always On My Mind' by Willie Nelson was Always On The Radio, it seems. He never hummed it, but it was such an ear worm that all country music is invalidated to him. 

Sal lingered behind Ash before reaching forward to look at one of the stacked CD's, accidentally butting his hand against hers. He apologized softly and let her pull the CD out to look at it. It was a Green Day album, nice.

"If you want, I have that one at home. You can borrow it if you'd like?" Sal offered, tilting his head while shoving his hands in his hoodie pockets.

Ashley blinked, looking down at the album and back up to Sal. "You have the newest album Insomniac? _You_? Sal Fisher? Usually you get music super late in the game." She flipped over the album to look at the songs on the back before going back to the album art.

"Is it so hard to believe?" He laughed softly, "But my dad got it for me last year for Christmas since I specifically put it on the list. He says the art gave him nightmares." It did look very.. nightmarish. Especially with that thing on the guys head. Wasn't that something they use for testing your eyes?

"I see, I see. Very cool! I'd love to borrow it so I can see if I actually like the songs on there. I heard Armatage Shanks and it's so good."

Sal relished in little moments like this, bonding with Ash a little and talking about things they both liked. He practically had hearts in his eyes while it happened, too. He always wondered if he was oblivious about his affection or played it off as being friendly. Same thing with Larry, actually. Man, he wished his brain would just make up its mind and figure out who he likes more. Feminine or masculine, figure it out! They talked a little about the album before they were rudely interrupted by Larry. The brunet slung both his arms around their shoulders, leaning in with a low hum. Larry did like some Green Day songs, but only the ones that were super about revolution and overthrowing the government. Peachy. He didn't seem too interested in this one, though. Figures.

They walked out of the store a little later with a bag of goodies. Sal and Larry both got the latest Sanity's Fall album, Ashley got a few CD's, and Sal also got some new guitar strings. You never know when they might break, and he would like to consider himself prepared when that does happen.

"Alright kiddos-" Larry did his best 'fatherly' voice while trying not to snicker, "Where to next?"

"I'd say food court? I need water, super thirsty." Ashley whined and complained, leaning her weight into Larry.

"If I wanted a toddler I would have made one at this point Ash." He flicked her forehead, offering his arms out to his friends. "You want food court too Sally?"

" _Burger King, Burger King-_ "

"Don't start chanting-"

"Burger King! Burger King!" Ashley joined in with a wide grin.

The two latched back onto Larry and their travel towards the food court began. However, they were almost there when Ashley dug her shoes into the hard linoleum below them. Jolting forward slightly, the two boys looked over at her to see what was up. And holy shit, it was something to behold. There before them was a store they had never seen before and probably just finished setting up about a week ago. There in front of their very eyes read the words ' _VICTORIA'S SECRET_ ' along with bras and panties in the window.

"I need a new bra. You guys head to the food court, alright? I promise I won't be more than ten minutes." Ashley then let go of Larry's arm, only for her arm to be grabbed in return.

"Hold up, Campbell. You absolutely know the rules! No splitting up. _Soooo_..~" Larry purred, looking back up to the store in front of them. "Lead the way, and we'll follow."

"Uh-" Sal swallowed thickly, letting go of Larry's arm, "Are we actually _allowed_ in there? Wouldn't we get kicked out or something?"

"No we wouldn't!"

"You might! Not like you guys are gonna buy something for yourselves."

"We could get Sal a bra, easy."

"Huh?"

After much debate in front of the store, Ashley finally caved and let the boys follow her in after some ground rules were imposed; no touching anything, no talking to anyone else, and no pretending Sal is a girl. Three pretty simple rules to follow. And for the most part, the boys did behave while she looked. Granted, she kept the two on a tight leash and felt like she was a mother of two toddlers, but at least they were somewhat.. helpful? Sal was more nervous to say literally anything in the store, but if asked he would give his opinion. Which, let's be honest, it was mostly Larry asking his opinion. They were behaving, for the most part, until they actually got to the lingerie section near the back. 

Larry was instantly gravitating towards a set of matching black panties and bra, but the midsection down to where the thighs would be was covered by black see-through fabric. Without dwelling on it, he plucked two off the hanger and slapped them in front of his friends.

"I- hey! What are you doing? I said not to touch anything!" Ashley scream-whispered at him, looking down at what was placed in front of her body. "And what is this?"

"I'm not _technically_ touching it. Touching the hanger, Ash. But I mean it looks good. You should thank me!"

"Aaand- why do I get one?" Sal asked, hesitantly touching at the meshy material attached to the bra.

"So you don't feel left out. You look good too, lil guy."

Both their faces were red, granted that Ashley's blush was far more noticeable Sal's. She had no clue what to say at this since it did look nice. But the fact that Larry saw it and wanted to envision her in it?? It just made her terribly flustered. Sal was feeling the embarrassment equally if not more. Lingerie was a girl thing, not a boy thing. Did Larry consider him as a girl sometimes? What the hell is bouncing around in that stoners head? 

_ "Did you three need help actually finding something or are you teens just loitering?" _

Uh oh. Ashley knows exactly how this woman is feeling, so she's quick to apologize about her friend and gives Larry a scowl. He goes to put them back, Sal following after him. Apparently since the store opened, a lot of boys have just been coming in and just ogling. It rattles customers, but it isn't like they could make a 'no boys' policy. Just as the lady was just about to let them stay, she looked over and saw both Sal and Larry holding things up to one another. Boys will be boys. 

They were kicked out after that.

"Are you guys fucking _kidding_ me??" Ash exploded once they were out of the store. "I just needed a bra and I didn't even leave with one!"

"Maybe you shouldn't have taken so long. I mean that was way over ten minutes." Larry snickered, trying to ease the mood a little with some humor. Only to dodge a kick. "Hey hey, easy! Those fat mall cops see you and we'll get kicked out of the whole mall."

"The only other place I can get one now is that gross old lady store where my mom goes, we might as well be kicked out of the whole mall!"

"She didn't ban us or anything, maybe you could go another time without us?" Sal suggested, shoving his hands in his pockets.

She glared at Sal for a moment before sighing and rubbing at her temple. "Yeah, I wanted to do that in the _first_ place. I should have if I knew both of you were immature as shit.

Sal and Larry couldn't help but feel guilty as Ash scolded them. It was their fault that they were kicked out, after all. But they were just trying to have fun! No harm caused, right? It wasn't like they were telling customers what they should wear. In fact, they refused to look at any other girl in that store to be civil. Well, Sal did anyway. Larry did glimpse at a couple girls once or twice. But it's never easy to explain to two boys that them just being boys can make people nervous. For now, Ashley dropped it. 

Ashley took in a deep breath to calm herself before letting it out dramatically, "I have no idea what I'm going to do with you two. You owe me."

"Owe you food?" Sal questioned, grabbing onto Larry's arm.

"You know you owe me food." She laughed, grabbing onto Larry's other arm, “The king of burgers, specifically.”


	5. fun in the treehouse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Larry needs a little time to decompress and stop thinking for a little bit. What better yet than some liquor, weed, and his two love interests?  
> (WARNING! This chapter contains alcohol use and marijuana use. If you want to avoid that, just ask for a summery in the comments and i'll gladly give it to you!)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you all for such kind words when my computer shit the bed and decided to delete everything i had. you all dont realize how much planning goes into all of this, trust me. i had so many chapters thoughtfully planned out and now theyre just.. gone in the wind. im still upset about it, especially since i feel like this chapter was a bit 'meh' due to it. i just hope you guys enjoy it. i made it just a little bit longer to help compensate a touch  
> but on better news, art for chapter 2 is out! go check out chapter two to snag the links!
> 
> update 9/6/20  
> art for this chapter!  
> insta: https://www.instagram.com/p/CEkzslTFEzc/  
> tumblr: https://kondorks-art.tumblr.com/post/628016367059206144/chapter-5-art

Tuesday came and went, the teens living their everyday normal lives without one another which, unsurprisingly enough, meant work, chores, family plans, etc etc. For Larry, it meant going through all those items on ebay and narrowing his list down even further. Sal was right, 260 was way too high for this amount of stuff. So instead of nine things, he narrowed it down to four. Two each. Sal really wanted that leather mask even though it wasn't exactly a kinky item, but he kept it in his cart anyway. He had also been staring at a choker with leather and ornate chains on it. Very kinky, would match perfectly with the mask. Though Ash had been a little bit harder to decipher, he did narrow it down to things she would actually want and not just things she had reacted to. Fishnets that would go all the way up to her navel and red leather skirt that her parents would surely freak out about being too short.

Now, one might be asking; Larry, what the fuck is your plan? Why are you getting these things for your two best friends? Why would you even think about getting these for your two best friends? The truth is- Larry just couldn't decide. They were both amazing and fucking cute, okay? He has most certainly heard of people, mostly rockstars at this point, being in multiple relationships with people and those people being okay with it. He didn't consider himself a rockstar, but.. goddamn he would be the luckiest man in the world if he could have a girlfriend AND a boyfriend. The cutest girl and guy in all of Nockfell, the two people that understood him the most and he got along with the most as well. No offense to the rest of their gang, but the three of them just had something special!

Something special that Larry might break with the shit he's pulling.

After pacing his room back and forth at least a hundred times, he bid on the items at the perfect moment. Now, he had to play the waiting game. The site would update in a few hours and he would be notified if he had won or lost. Didn't help that he sort of glitched out the screen bidding on four things all at once. He needed something to ease his mind of the anxiety of knowing if he was a winner or loser of ebay items.

Hmm.. wonder what helps with stress and is in an easy, smokeable roll?

But alas, there is not a single crumb of weed to be seen. God damnit. He needs to get more from Todd's parents at some point. Todd always hated that his parents, of all parents, were the ones that provided the 'good times' to the kids. The red head never smoked it, but apparently he was fine with his friends doing it as long as they were safe in the process. No putting forks in the microwave like last time, no driving, etc etc. Todd was the assigned mom of the friend group to make sure none of them got arrested or hurt. D'aw, he really does care. But no matter, Larry needs something to relax his nerves a bit and his trusty weed baggie has gone empty. What's a man to do?

It was around two hours later when Lisa had finally left for her usual girls night with a few other moms she hung out with. Honestly, Larry was really proud of her getting out and doing stuff like this. She deserved it. Plus a bright side was that he got some alone time in the apartment. Win-win situation! After the usual childish kiss-on-the-forehead goodnight, Lisa went off to go have herself some fun with the girls. And Larry? Oh boy, he's going to have himself some fun as well.

"Sal. Saaaally Faaaace.. you asleep dude?" He had quickly gone to his dresser and snagged the walkie-talkie that was pretty much means of communication at this point. They had phones, but it just felt way cooler to use these. Boys will be boys.

There was no response for a minute before the usual static of Sal pressing the wrong button sounded. Man, they have had these things for years and the bluenette always presses the channel button first. 

"Yeah, i'm up. Sorry, I was cooking. What's up?"

"Oh shit. Mission subsided for a sec. What'cha cooking?" ...What? He's hungry!

"Quesadillas. I'll bring you one. What's the mission?"

Larry fistbumped the air silently because thank god, he scored himself a quesadilla. He laid out the plan for his dear friend Sal, leaning back on the dresser with a grin stretched over his face.

"I... don't know, dude. My dad would be over-the-moon pissed at me." Even through the terrible connection of the walkie, the hint of nerves from Sal were as loud as ever.

"Oh come on. Henry won't notice! I have a perfect plan to cover our tracks. C'mon. I'll invite Ash? She'll make it a party for fuckin' sure."

There was a brief pause in their connection, Larry worried that he had spooked off the other teen a few floors above him. Sal was mulling things over, yes, but he was also eating his tasty quesadilla. He responded with his mouth full, a quiet 'alright, fine', and Larry fistbumped the air twice.

"You won't regret it, Sally! Oh and- thanks for the quesadilla dude. Sounds delish."

"No prob. I'll be down in twenty."

It was around twenty minutes later when the familiar 'ding' of the elevator reached the basement floor and.. man. Do you know how hard it is to carry two bottles of cold vodka underneath your sweatshirt, carry a covered quesadilla on a plate, and ALSO work an elevator that needs a key to a certain floor? Larry, you lucky fucking bastard. At least he was waiting there near the elevator, snickering and raising his eyebrows.

"My my, how inconspicuous." He helped Sal out a little, hands moving underneath his sweatshirt to yank the two bottles out. "I asked Chug if he wanted to join but apparently he's at Maple's. I think they rented out the whole Blockbuster or something." He rolled his eyes, looking back down at his friend. "But Ash is coming with beers. Her friend works at the 7/11 when I'm not there apparently." Knowing your co-workers is such a drag anyway.

He was quick to lead Sal inside the apartment, setting the two glass bottles down on the table before eagerly taking the quesadilla. He thanked Sal again, of course. He isn't a monster. His friend made him food and Sal's cooking was pretty good. The shorter male liked veggies more than Larry, but damn did he know how to cook them well. Hell, he barely even noticed the broccoli among the many layers of cheese. Ah, precious Sal. Trying to get him to eat more veggies in such a sneaky way.. how cute.

"Won't her parents get mad at her again?" Sal asked, walking into the apartment and standing beside Larry, watching him wolf down the quesadilla. Well, at least he liked it.

"What they don't know won't hurt them. Plus she told me they ain't home." He shrugged his shoulders in a way that said 'what can you do?' while giving a lopsided grin Sal's way. He's the instigator for the group for sure.

When Ashley had finally gotten there, she was grinning ear-to-ear with a backpack on. Oh my, what goodies she had in there. Not only did she bring plenty of beers (that were awfully heavy, might she add), but she also got some snacks. Mostly chips and various packaged sweets that had way too much sugar in them. Gotta feed the alcohol somehow, right?

"Aaaaand-" She tugged something out of a hidden pocket that made Larry light up. A certain little baggy she shook as if teasing a toddler with a ring of keys, "I got this as well. You're super welcome, Mr. Druggie."

"I- hey! I'm no druggie. Weed isn't addictive, you know. " Both Ash and Sal rolled their eyes at that statement. "Anyway, let's head out to the treehouse, yeah? Barrels of fun up there."

The trio then gathered up their snacks and alcohol before following Larry out the bulkhead and outside. Ashley had just been out here, so she knew that it wasn't too bad out. A little bit buggy, but mosquitoes weren't too much of an issue in Nockfell. Mostly moths and, you know, cults, but more so moths than anything. After situating themselves inside the treehouse and closing the door that opened on the floor, Larry flicked on a couple lamps to brighten up the area. It was dusty and smelled like mildew somewhat, but at least it wouldn't be dark. The bright side was that they would be hammered AND stoned, so who cares that it smells sort of bad up here?

"I don't want to smoke still," Sal admitted, slipping his prosthetic off and setting it beside him. He was sitting on the uneven wooden floor, finger trailing along the knots in the old wooden planks that showed their wear-and-tear. "I'll drink though."

"Thatta boy!" Ash plopped down near him, starting to take all the booze and snacks out of her bag. "I even brought a straw for you so it'll be easier. Spilling a bear out of your face won't be fun."

Sal gave a little smile her way, taking the straw that was handed to him. He squished the plastic thing a few times before just holding it between his index and thumb. Ashley was busying herself with setting up the bottles in a nice-ish way while Larry busied himself with the bong and lighter. He had already taken a couple clumps of weed out of the bag to plop into the glass contraption, something that the author has no idea how it works. Isn't there water involved? Where the fuck is the bong juice?

Larry situated himself across from his two friends, lighting the thing up and taking a long, slow inhale from the smoke that rose. Pulling back, he held in the smoke before aiming his head upwards to release the breath. He let out a sigh of relief, already feeling a bit at ease. He had almost forgotten about the stuff he had bought on ebay. Almost.. Christ, he really needed to smoke and drink tonight.

After some encouragement, he got the two other teens to start drinking their weight in alcohol. He wasn't pushing or anything, but Sal was nervous to drink and Ash was maybe having second doubts on this. She did have to work tomorrow, after all. Well- they all did. Her shift started at 8am while theirs started at night. Ouch, poor Ash.

"Mn-" She giggled softly, leaning back on her hands, "You both are so- cute."

"And stupid."

"But still cute." She grinned.

Ashley was having her fair-share of fun, having drunk nearly half of the booze she had brought. Sal was following behind her, a straw in one of his dad's vodka bottles as he drank along with his friends. Sure, one was nearly half-empty, but it was very much empty now with maybe a couple shot's worth at the bottom that the plastic straw just couldn't reach. Ashley's words did reach his ears, but he just hadn't put a meaning to it. Nothing had a lot of meaning right now. His gut was warm and full of alcohol and he somewhat felt dizzy. He wasn't as drunk as the two of them were, but this was still nice.

"Oh- man." Larry laughed, nearly knocking himself over, "You- yeah! You're both.. so cute too." He made a squishing motion in the air with his hands, a lopsided grin on his face. The hell was he thinking about? Why, nothing more than squishing his dear friends cheeks of course!

"I- think-" Sal paused and wiped away the drool that was coming out from his cheek, eyes following Larry and Ash for a moment, "That you're both- also- both.. cute."

"Well said." Larry slurred, "But! I have something else to say."

Larry paused and looked around for something, shrugging and grabbing the lighter. He clinked it three times against the beer bottle, as if to make some crude wedding toast. There was no point since he already had Ashley's and Sal's attention, but they snickered and giggled along with it anyway, hushing up to let him speak.

"You-'re both my best friends. Super best friends, yah. 'N- You're both so hot." He paused for a moment before taking another inhale from the bong, exhaling it once more towards the ceiling. "And y'know! I've been doing research aaaand.." He sets the items he had in his hands down somewhat messily on the floor below them in order to do a terrible drumroll against his knees.

" 'M bi!"

Now, growing up in a small town leads to not many things having answers. There wasn't a lot of out gay people in the area, meaning they really only asked Todd and Neil questions to better understand them. Larry thought he was gay years ago, but also thought he was straight years ago. It was complicated for him and he didn't know what the answer was. The two guys he could go to, well.. he was just nervous! He didn't want to say he was gay and then turn out to like girls in the end. He felt like that would just hurt his two buddies. Instead, he did his own research.

"You're bi?"

The question wasn't spoken with any form of malice or ill intent behind it, but Ashley was confused. Bi? In her drunk brain, she had no idea what that meant. But at least Sal was here to explain. He had grown up in New Jersey, after all. The gay part of it too.

"Bisexual. He-" Sal hiccuped, wiping his mouth, "Likes guys and girls."

There was a pause as Ash mulled the information over, eyebrows furrowing. "There's a word for that..?"

Larry nodded his head quickly, fast enough to most likely give himself a concussion at this rate of intoxication. He was grinning like an idiot while nervous butterflies pooled in his stomach. Would they be okay with that? Was that fine?

Eventually, it was decided that it was more than fine that Larry was bi. It was great! Good for him. Ashley was ecstatic about it since now she could talk about boys and all the stuff Todd hates talking about with her. Though when her excitement died down a little, the two brunets noticed that Sal wasn't saying much of anything. Instead, idly stirring his straw in the narrow vodka bottle opening.

" 'S wrong?" Larry asked, leaning over to look at Sal better. "You're- fine with me bein' bi.. yeah?"

" 'M.. bi too."

The realization hit Larry like a ton of bricks, staring at his blue-haired friend. Holy shit. Sal liked guys. Holy fuck. Holy shit. He was practically bouncing up and down at how excited he was, moving closer and wrapping his tiny buddy in his arms.

"We're bi-buddies!"

"Biddies!" Ashley joined in, wrapping them in a hug as well.

"We're biddies!"

Larry was over the goddamn moon at the fact that Sal Fisher, his friend and crush, was at least half into guys. They didn’t poke and prod into crushes and whatnot, thank god for Larry’s case, but it was still good information to have! Sal was willing to be with a guy, Ash was willing to be with a guy, it was just good news all around. Though the real question still stands.. Would they want said guy to be Larry?

After they were drunk and stupid out of their minds, the kids carefully climbed out of the semi hot-boxed tree house and went back down to the basement, giggly and giddy, repeating ‘biddies’ under their breath since it was such a fucking stupid word to be saying. They made some snacks for themselves before the realization of whatever tomorrow held would surely include rage from their parents. Ashley said she was going to be with Maple, but she still had work early in the morning. The boys had work as well, but they had plenty of time to cure themselves of their hangovers before their shifts started. Though, something else was itching at the back of Sal’s alcohol-filled brain. He came down here with his dad’s vodka, and he would come back up with less vodka and have to put it in the fridge. Hm.

It wasn’t adding up and it took three people to come up with a damn solution.

“Sally- vodka looks a LOT like water, yeah?” Larry commented, leaning against the table and tapping at the glass vodka bottle with his index. “Why not just- why not just fill ‘er up with water?”

“Oh my god. Oh my god, Larry. You’re a genius.” Sal halfway stumbled towards him and snagged the bottles, filling them up with water until they were about the same level as before. It would just be slightly watered down, no biggie, right? No harm done. Plus it looked like water! His dad surely wouldn’t notice.

The three filled the rest of their night with various drinking games that Ashley had been suggesting. Beer pong was a huge hit, but they didn’t have enough hand-eye coordination to be able to get them in the damn cups. They drank anyway, though, skipping the rules and just throwing the bouncy ball that they had been using at each other. Ashley herself wasn’t drinking anymore, but it was funny as hell to watch them get drunk off their asses and stumble around like blind mice. Though when it came time for Ashley and Sal to head home, Larry made sure that they weren’t both too stupidly drunk before sending them off. Sal was a little worse for wear, but Ashley just felt like she needed to throw up and drink some water. She could easily pass it off as a small flu to her parents if needed.

However, the next morning was not forgiving in the slightest. Larry and Sal woke up feeling god awful with the worst hangovers of their life. It wasn’t nearly as bad as Ashley’s, though. She had to wake up at 6am today to get to work and she hadn’t snuck back home until nearly 2am. She was really worse for wear and put on extra makeup to hide the fact she felt like utter dog shit. Again, lucky boys, they didn’t go in until late evening. They just needed a good excuse to their parents why they weren’t feeling well. Lisa felt terrible for leaving Larry alone when he didn’t feel good, doting on him and giving him some good momma love, but Henry wasn’t as.. Forgiving.

“Hey Sal?” His father’s head poked through the door, waking the boy up. He rolled over and practically blinked one eye at a time. “Why is my vodka  _ frozen _ in the fucking freezer?”

Well, shit. Looks like it was his turn to be grounded this time.


	6. crashing down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A certain someone is mad about being grounded, and a certain other someone doesn't remember certain events from the night previous because of all the liquor they drank. Larry's trying to cope with both things at once and, as a result, feels like the world is crashing around him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey fuck i forgot to make art my bad!! ive been working on making adopts, but ill be sure to update this soon and have art made! and for those of you wanting to SUBMIT art, just tag me on insta and tag it as #ebaypackagescomeinmanysizes! its a lengthy tag yes but its the best i could come up with
> 
> edit 9/6/20  
> chapter art!  
> insta: https://www.instagram.com/p/CEsYqTAlETw/  
> tumblr: https://kondorks-art.tumblr.com/post/628282932837171200/i-thought-you-were-also-mad-at-me-god-sal

The following day wasn't a pleasant one for any of the three teens. Larry was able to get away with his own massive hangover since, well, his  _ mom  _ was also hungover in her room. Neither of them spoke and would only silently shuffle to the bathroom to get some pain medicine. Sal was tragically grounded, his dad being absolutely pissed that his son drank his liquor. He had no idea that two other kids helped out draining one of the bottles. Sal was no snitch. He wouldn't rat out Ash and Larry like that. Though, Ashley probably got the worst blow than either of the boys. No, she wasn't grounded, but she  _ did  _ have to go into work at 7am the next morning. She was so hungover and groggy her whole shift, feeling like someone hit her with a semi-truck. What a goddamn trooper. Each of the three teens had their own battles through the day, but they all managed to truck through it.

Around 3:40pm was when Sal and Larry's day would start, unlike Ashley’s day. She had to go through a hangover at 7am like a madman, but the two boys were able to gradually ease off theirs and drink plenty of water to soothe the absolute migraines they were getting through the day. It’s almost as if drinking your weight in booze is a bad idea. As usual during a workday Sal and Larry shared, Sal would wait in the lobby of the apartments waiting for his friend to drive him to work. He would, on occasion, have a small chat with Mr. Addison through his mail slot. Sometimes he would be given a cup of tea as well, even though he wasn't fond of tea. He would drink it to be polite of course. But when Larry arrived to the ground floor, the metal doors of the elevator creaking open, he would neither find Sal chatting or sipping tea. Or standing up, for that matter. Instead, the other teen was slumped against the wall and nearly sitting on the dingey old carpet. Gross.

  
  


"Pff-" Larry chuckled softly, heavy boots thudding across the creaky floors as he made his way over to his little buddy, "Don't you look eager for work."

"I got grounded, Larry. 'Cause of your dumb little drinking party." His head turned upwards to stare at Larry, eyes narrowed behind the holes of his prosthetic.

  
  


A shiver ran up and down Larry’s spine at that look. Sheesh, he already knew the other was mad at him. He crouched down beside him before losing his balance and nearly toppling over onto his side. He finally just bit the bullet and took a seat on the gross carpet. Yuck.

  
  


"I'm really sorry you got in trouble, Sal. But- you had fun, right?"

"..Yeah, I had fun." Sal admitted after pausing for a few seconds. "But i'm still pissed at you. You and Ashley didn't get ratted out,  _ might I add _ ."

"You can be pissed at me, but thanks for not ratting us out. You still want me to drive you to work?"

"...Yeah."

"Alright, c'mon then."

  
  


Larry got up off the floor and brushed himself off, offering his hand out to Sal, smiling softly. The other still didn't seem to pleased with the taller teen, which stung pretty hard. Though seeing the other so pouty was kind of cute. The bluenette took his hand and got up off of the floor, soon letting go of his hand and walking towards the exit. Larry followed, catching up to him and shoving his hands in his pockets.

  
  


"Still need a ride  _ home  _ from work?"

"Yeah."

An annoyed noise left the back of Larry’s throat before he could stop it. "Is that all you're gonna say to me? Yeah and nah?" Larry opened the door for him, hearing the scoff underneath Sal's breath.

"I told you I'm upset with you. And I think it's with pretty decent reason."

  
  


The two walked out to the truck, not saying anything after that. Sal was upset, and it really  _ was  _ for a good reason. Larry hadn't been grounded, Ash hadn't been grounded.. Sal still felt bad for Ash getting grounded earlier this week, but now Sal was the one getting the short end of the stick. And with his Henry’s alcohol, no less. Sal had to pay for it from his own pockets. That vodka was expensive too. To add insult to injury, Henry didn't trust Sal anymore. As simple as that in itself was, it was still a harsh blow to the poor teen. It would really take a while for that trust to gain back to where it had been. Man, Sal hadn't seen his dad that upset in years. Not since they were in Jersey, anyway. But Larry just didn't seem to get it. 

And Larry really didn’t get it. Mainly because Sal wasn’t saying anything other than the basics of why he was upset. Larry sat in the driver's seat with an unlit cigarette hanging between his lips, eyebrows were scrunched up while clearly trying to plan his next move that wouldn't further add fuel to the fire. Finally, he just decided to drive the other to work. He just needed to cool down, right? Larry had already apologized.. in a sense. If things were still bad after the other got out from work, he would actually apologize and try to get him out of being grounded if he could. Just another thing to think about while he was at work, apologizing and plotting an escape plan. Better than not having anything to think about, anyway.

The drive to Nockfell General felt like it took twenty minutes longer than it should have taken, Larry lazily blowing smoke outside of the window and parking in the usual spot near the front to let Sal off. The brunet looked over at the other teen before unlocking the doors, blinking in surprise when Sal immediately started opening the door and getting out. No idle chat?

  
  


"Hey-" Larry reached out, taking a gentle hold of his wrist. Sal turned his gaze back, on the edge of the seat and ready to hop out. He sighed and put out his cigarette.

"Listen, man. I don't want you to have a bad shift cause of my dumbass. I'm sorry." Brown eyes tried meeting blue ones, but Sal wasn't having any of it.

"I'll text you later." 

  
  


Nothing else. No 'bye' not even an understanding 'okay'. Larry watched the other slide out of the truck and close the door, heading in through the entrance of the store. So much for that plan. Larry pinched the bridge of his nose and couldn't help the bubble of anger that emerged from his stomach. Sal wasn't typically mad at him, so it means he fucked up. ‘You can be mad at me’ his ass, he didn’t want Sal mad at him. He fucked up but Sal still had a good time last night? His forehead hit the steering wheel a couple times. If anyone else was mad at him, he wouldn't give a shit. Well- besides Ash. Anyone else besides those two? He would be fine. As the teen drove off, he couldn't help but think that maybe this wasn't just about Sal getting grounded. Was Sal upset that Larry was bi? That couldn't be. He had also said he was bi, so there was no way Sal could hate him for something so trivial. Maybe Sal wanted to come out first? He hadn’t heard anything or even thought about the guy being bi, so maybe he accidentally took the limelight away from him. Ugh, he didn’t want to be overthinking things!

Would his boss be really  _ that _ angry if Larry smoked a blunt before work? Yeah.. chances are he would get caught and then have to pay for the price for a stupid thing like that. But goddamn, could he use some weed right now. He had to settle with another cigarette however, letting the thing droop out from his lips as he drove.

Of course the whole time Larry was at work, he couldn’t help but worry about his little buddy and little crush, Sal. It made him just a touch on edge, but he didn’t let it show with the strangers passing by and buying gas or snacks. It was pretty quiet for a Thursday, but whether it was busy as shit or slow as hell, he had to stand here and do his job until 10:30. God, he wished it was just ten. Well, sometimes it even takes longer than that. Being the only 24 hour gas station meant he had to wait until the person after his shift got here. Sometimes it was 10:30, sometimes it was ten or twenty minutes after that. It was a pain in the ass, but usually he didn’t care. Though if the guy made Sal wait? He usually walked through the door with a glare from Larry.

Sometimes there were perks to working at a semi-popular gas station, and that being having his friends hang out where he worked. Ash would stop by on occasion, grab some snacks, and loiter while hanging out with the taller brunet. It surely made working more bearable, and if asked, he could always lie and say it was a customer who simply wouldn’t leave. No biggie. Today was one of those shifts where Ashley dropped by, opening the door suddenly and nearly making the bell above it fall right off.

  
  


“Jeez-” Larry jumped from his spot behind the counter, staring at the door and totally  _ not _ the comics section of the newspaper. “You scared the shit out of me Ash. How’s it hangin’?”

“Oh, it’s  _ hangin’  _ alright.”

  
  


The tone made Larry sigh through his nose and straighten up, prepared to face hellfire. Shit, did she get grounded too? Great. Now Sal  _ and _ Ash were mad at him. What are the chances?

  
  


“I had to go to work with the most killer hangover, but I just nursed it with two cups of black coffee from the food court.” The tone had left her voice, the girl strolling up to the counter and leaning her elbows against it. “Geez, what’s got you so tense?”

Larry huffed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “I thought you were also mad at me. God, Sal ripped me a new one when I drove him to work. He got grounded for stealin’ his old man’s spirits.”

  
  


Ashley furrowed her eyebrows and pushed her cheek into her palm, apologizing to Larry. He didn’t want an apology from her, he didn’t want an apology at all. He had said sorry to Sal and he was going to try to figure out how to get him un-grounded, Larry simply didn’t want the little guy mad at him anymore.

  
  


“Well  _ I _ personally had a really fun time at your little shin dig, Larry. I mean thank god my parents didn’t find out, but it was pretty fun.” Ashley grinned at him. “Though I don’t remember the last half of it. I remember sobering up but not much else. Kinda blurry with how much we drank.”

  
  


Larry had been smiling with her and nodding, glad that at least she wasn’t mad and had enjoyed the party. But uh. What? She didn’t remember anything? How does she remember how good it was if she was so plastered she blacked out for a while? But then Larry’s heart sank, trying not to frown.

Ashley didn’t remember him coming out as bi, did she? 

He swallowed a nervous lump in his throat, leaning against the dingy counter top that separated them. Does he tell her again? Does he come out right here in the empty convenience store? Should he wait for another opportunity? God, he’s been thinking too much today and it was giving him a headache.

  
  


“I can hear you thinking from here, big brain.” She commented, moving down below Larry’s view to look at the candy options below. While she was out of view, Larry mouthed probably eighty curses before her head popped back up. “Something on your mind?”

“Well- yeah. Sally’s mad at me and I don’t want him to be mad at me.” His fingers drummed against the counter, exhaling through his nose. “Any suggestions Ash?”

  
  


The girl stood up fully, humming as she thought it over. She also placed her candy of choice on the counter, which were a couple Cow Tales and a lone pack of mint gum. As she tugged out her wallet, she had a pretty good idea.

  
  


“Well Henry is a little harsh Larry, I don’t think you can get Sal out from being grounded. But Sal has been wanting to go to the Peak for a while. We could take him there when he’s un-grounded!”

  
  


Larry perked up at that idea, scratching at the stubble on his chin and nodding his head. Now, the Peak was a place where the land-locked Nockfell kids went to actually get to a body of water. Sure, there was a murky-ass lake nearby but it wasn’t any fun. And really gross to sink into layers and layers of silt and mud. That was mainly a place for old men to fish. Even so, many kids didn’t go to the Peak often since it was impossible without a car. The Peak in, all reality, was just Lake Ontario. But calling it that was no fun. Plus the town that was the closest drive from Nockfell, Sandy Creek, was known for the large leap-off spot that let you dive into one of the safer ends of the large great lake, hence the nickname ‘The Peak’. If someone tried to swim anywhere else, the strong current would surely drown someone. But Sandy Creek was known for one other thing as well; the bratty high schooler’s there. God, they were all such assholes. It’s almost as if they could sniff out the Nockfell kids from a mile away and always claimed the Peak for themselves. Well, not this time. WIth the shared plan that he and Ashley had, they were going to have a fun time at that spot whether Larry had to break a couple noses or not.

  
  


“This’ll be really fun Lar! Hopefully it cheers Sal up as well. Tell him I said hey when you pick him up, alright? I would stop by his work but last time I talked to him, he got yelled at.” Ashley rubbed at her neck and gave an apologetic grin, snagging her snacks when she paid.

“Yeah, I hope he likes it too. But I’ll make sure to tell him you said hey. I’ll see you later Ash.”

  
  
When she left and the door shut fully behind her, Larry groaned and rubbed at his face. He had to figure things out with Sal so he wouldn’t be mad  _ and also _ come out to Ashley once more. It wasn’t much of a big deal, but it felt like the world was crashing around him bit by bit.


	7. better now

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sal goes through his shift being an angry little bean, but simmers down with the help of a certain friend behind a case of meat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AGAIN thank you guys so so much for such kind words! sorry if this chapter is a tad boring, but i promise the next one wont be nearly as boring and dialog-y. and hopefully ill even get that out this month!! no promises though. just irks me im a couple months behind, haha  
> CHAPTER ART FOR PREVIOUS CHAPTERS ARE NOW UP! go through the chapters and look if youd like, i got links for insta AND tumblr. and from those coming here from amino or insta- hello! i hope you enjoy!
> 
> art for this chapter!  
> insta: https://www.instagram.com/p/CEz9syalyRg/  
> tumblr: https://kondorks-art.tumblr.com/post/628549602340126720/chapter-7-art

_"I'll text you later."_

Sal slipped out of the truck without much of another word to his friend, closing the door behind him and heading into the store without as much as a wave to the other. Aside from Larry apologizing to him, was he even sorry? Was he _actually_ sorry about what had happened or was he trying to save face? Sal did have fun last night, but he was still upset that his dad no longer could trust him with his alcohol. Alcohol he was very hesitant to bring, might he add. Sal Fisher was not like his friends in the typical teen sense of getting drunk, partying, getting high, etc. He was the type who just wanted to kick back and watch movies or just hang out. Damn peer pressure. Damn Larry.

As expected like most of his shifts, there wasn't really anyone around. There were still people moseying around and doing their shopping. It wasn't typically busy on a Thursday evening, however. A Friday or a Saturday? That was a different story, since that was usually when people got paid after a long week of work. Personally Sal couldn't wait for his paycheck to be printed Sunday morning. He felt like such an adult taking a check to the bank and depositing it. Despite the instant serotonin rush thinking of it, he didn't want to think about his glorious paycheck he worked so hard to earn. He wanted to be annoyed and angry with Larry, even though he said he didn't want Sal to have a bad shift because of him. No. He is angy mode now. Even if it was a bit childish.

While he steamed about Larry, he did his job and looked at what needed to be stocked and checked with what was in the back. They had new products coming in apparently, things he would look at and shrug his shoulders when looking them over. Interesting stuff on occasion, and other things that would make him gag just reading the label for. Either way, it was a good pass time that took his mind off of the tasks he did at work. And also took his mind off of whatever he was thinking. So as much as he would love to angrily check the price of Corn Flakes, he couldn't exactly be too angry. 

Later on during his shift, Sal was taking a larger load of things that needed stocking using a dolly. The wheels were squeaky and god-awful. At least there weren't many around to be annoyed by the noise. There was a quicker way to the aisles he needed to take, but he decided maybe he should check and peek behind the deli counter to see if a certain green-haired friend is working. As he passed by, he stood on his toes while moving to see if he could spot Chug. Only to find.. that no one was behind the counter? That's strange. The lights were on and it wasn't 7:30 yet. He should still be there cleaning the last slicer at least.

All of a sudden, there was a shift in movement from behind the counter and Chug popped up, baring slightly crooked teeth with a large grin. It made Sal jump, skitting to a stop with the large load behind him. It bumped into his ass and nearly sent him falling forward.

"Haha- woah there Sally, easy. I didn't mean to scare you THAT badly." Chug was quick to apologize, leaning against the deli counter. 

"I also didn't expect you to be hiding. Have you just been hiding your whole shift?" Sal walked up to the display case that showed all the meats and cheese the store had to offer. The counter was so tall he had to stand on his toes the whole time whenever he spoke to Chug.

"Pf- no no. I heard that squeaky thing all the way from the back room. Assumed it was you coming this way." Chug hummed, "So what's up Sal? Feel like I haven't seen much of you around."

Well, Sal really didn't know how to answer that. He's been around, working, living his life really. It's _Chug_ who's the one that hasn't been around. Personally, he was happy when he heard that him and Maple had started a relationship. It wasn't something he had seen coming, yet it was nice. It was cute. He was really happy for them, truly.

But do couples really spend every waking moment together for this long?

"I could say the same for you. You and Maple have been pretty scarce. How mean of you two to form a loving relationship and keep us out of it."

Chug laughed at that, grinning once more. "Sorry, I've just been really getting along with her family as of late. They like having me over. Her folks are great." He paused for a moment, pushing his chin into his hand. "Buuut I suppose I can make some time for my favorite apartment bros. Is Todd and Neil back in town yet?"

Sal shook his head, hands going into his pockets. "Nope. Haven't really heard from them either, Neil is posting to his blog so they aren't stranded somewhere at least. Still at the convention I think? Or somewhere."

"We'll have to have a great get-together when they get back then! All of us, if work schedules allow it 'n everything."

That actually sounded pretty nice. Sal hadn't thought of it, really. He was eager for Todd to come back, everyone was. They all missed their two gay friends. And god knows they're the only smart ones in the group.. they really needed them back before something (or someone) got caught on fire. The gang without Todd or Neil can get too chaotic at times. Having a small party when they got back would surprise them for certain.

"We'll just have to cut it down to me, you, and Larry. How about tomorrow night? We can watch movies at my place?"

Behind his mask, Sal frowned and sighed. "Can't. Grounded. Don't know when I'm being released either."

Chug blinked at that, eyebrows furrowing. "What? You, Sal Fisher? Grounded? What the hell happened?"

Sal had to get off his toes if he was going to tell the whole story. Going flat on his feet and knocking him down a few inches, he started the story of Larry wanting him to bring his dad's booze for a little get-together with Ashley. Chug interjected, pouting jokingly that he wasn't invited. Sal apologized but there wasn’t much he could do. It wasn't his party. Wasn't his place to invite people all willy-nilly. Chug just laughed and said he was working anyway, gesturing for Sal to continue. He went on about how it was a good time and how in all their stupidity, replaced his dad's vodka with just tap water. Chug seemed confused, asking why or how Henry could have possibly noticed. The bluenette then explained the science behind it: water freezes, vodka doesn't.

"Oooh.. man. That's harsh. Yeah- no offense but I don't blame Henry. When I have a kid and realize they took my booze i'd be pretty upset too."

"I don't blame him either. I'm just- mad at Larry. He just doesn't seem to get it, you know?" Sal took his hands out of his pockets and crossed his arms over his chest to display his annoyance.

"Wait- did they get off the hook? Ash and Larry?"

"Mmhm."

Chug scoffed, tilting his head, "Man, that sucks. They drank too. Softie Sal didn't rat them out?" He hummed, grinning at the new nickname, "Why so mad at just Larry? Did he apologize?"

"Yes but he- I.. ugh-" Sal didn't know how to voice it. He just knew he should be mad so he is mad. Larry made him bring the alcohol and pressured him to drink a little. Then a little more, then a little more after that-

All the while Sal was struggling to verbalize all this, Chug stroked at his chin. He was no therapist. Even so, he could try to help at the very least. The situation was a little tricky, especially just from one view, but he would rather make an attempt than to watch things crash and burn with his buddies.

"Is he picking you up tonight?"

"Yeah. It sucks. I don't have any other ride." Sal slumped his shoulders, defeated. "Aaand I said I would text him when I get out. I don't have my phone. My dad took it."

"Don't worry, i'll text him dude." Chug eased, nodding, "Maybe it's good he's giving you a ride. He isn't mad at you for being mad at him. Maybe he's gonna try to make it up to you? And maybe you guys should just.."

"Talk it out?"

“Yep."

"Maybe I don't _want_ to talk it out. Maybe I just wanna stay mad for _forever_." He kicked his feet a little against the worn-out tiles of the store.

"Well- your choice, I guess." Chug shrugged his shoulders meekly, glancing around and flinching. "Shit- manager. Act like you're doing something." He whispered.

It was nice to have a conversation with Chug after so long, even if it was a little short-lived due to a manager stalking the aisles. The conversation quickly went to work related and about the baler out back that crushes cardboard. Yup, all work talk here, nothing about his relationship with another friend at all. Sal went back to the dolly after side-eyeing the stickler manager, telling Chug when he got out and thanking him for texting Larry for him. With that said, he went on continuing to drag the dolly to the right aisle, going back to work and stocking the shelves up.

See, Sal did think about what Chug was saying, he really did. It's not like he wanted to be grounded and mad at one of his best friends. But here he was, grounded and mad at one of his best friends anyway. Chug did make a point, however. Maybe he should talk to Larry on the ride back to the apartments. It might be a little awkward and even so, he might be able to get what he’s thinking into order and be able to express further why he was mad.

  
  


Eventually, it was time for him to head out. Most people had already gone home already, including Chug and various other people that worked in the store. Sal, a couple other stockers, and the night cleaning crew were all who were left. Along with the same manager that was giving him and Chug the stink eye for talking while working. The time was ten, which was when the store officially closed to customers. The actual place wouldn't be empty until maybe eleven at night. Sal has never seen the store actually closed. He could easily imagine it could be creepy without the terrible music playing with the lights out. The music playlist itself was terrifying on it’s own.

The teen clocked out after finishing putting extra dollies away, rounding his way back to the front of the store to walk out the doors. He had hoped Chug had actually texted Larry to tell him what time he got out, though Larry was usually good about picking him up. If anything, he just had to wait outside for a little while or go back up to the break room to wait for the brunette to pull up. If Chug didn't text him, he may have a problem of waiting a little bit longer than he normally would be. At least it was summer, not winter. During the winter he wouldn't step foot outside unless Larry said he was already there waiting for him. It wasn't yet starting to get really cold at night, so Sal wouldn't mind sitting around waiting for the other.

Lucky for him, he didn't have to wait too long. There the pickup truck sat, parked (probably illegally) right near the curb of the store. Sal shoved his hands into his pockets and moved closer, the headlights blinding him a moment as he got in their line of light. He then dipped to the left, opening up the passengers-side door before hopping in. No words were exchanged while he shut the door and buckled up, sitting back in the seat. There was just a moment of silence that felt like lasted minutes that was probably only ten or twenty seconds.

"So," Larry started, putting out a cigarette he had lit. Judging by how small it was between his index and thumb, he might have been sitting here for a few minutes. "..How was work?"

Sal didn't look at his friend, instead reaching up to take his hair out of it's pig tails to let it flow over his shoulders. He could tell the other wanted to ask a different question but was treading lightly. It irked him a little, just wanting Larry to spit out the question already.

"Good." He responded simply, "You?"

"Wasn't too bad. Nothing too dramatic. Annoying middle schoolers but.. always got those." His voice trailed near the end of his sentence, fingers drummed against the steering wheel a moment.

"I don't want to push. Are you still.. _mad_?"

There's the question he was hesitating on asking, the question Sal knew was on the tip of his tongue when he got in the truck. In reality, Sal really didn't know the answer. Was he mad at Larry more or mad at _himself_ more? The other had asked him to bring booze. He didn't exactly force him to or anything. Though he _did_ pressure him to drink, something he didn't like to do because of his dad. Sal didn't like smoking weed or cigarettes and he didn't like drinking. One of the few goody-two-shoes in the group. Larry was really the only one who did all three and no one judged him for it. Though, problems start happening when you push things onto other people.

"Not as much." He snapped one of the hair ties onto his wrist, working on the other ponytail now.

"Not as much?" Larry repeated. "Can I get any other info?"

"I didn't really want to bring my dad's alcohol and I didn't really want to drink. And then the following day you're confused as to why I'm angry."

The words were simple from his lips and had a small amount of venom attached to them. Sal finally looked over to Larry, looking up to the teen's face. He looked like he just swallowed a rock and Sal watched his adam's apple bob as he processed his words. He then noticed the other was still in uniform. He didn't even bother taking his badge off. How the hell can he get away with a custom tag that had 'BITCH' written on it? It always seemed to make him smile whenever he saw it. Man, Larry's manager was so cool. And like.. never around. Also cool. He shouldn't be admiring the vulgar tag, however. He was still angry. 

"I- dude..” He started, voice taking on a softer and more apologetic tone than hours before, “I never meant to pressure you into anything. Listen- I'll.. I’ll talk to your dad. Okay? Maybe not right now since it's late and he's probably conked out, but in the morning I will. Promise." The brunette chewed on his lip a moment, shoulders slumping. "And I'll even get grounded too. We just can't rat Ash out. That a deal dude?"

Sal snapped the other hair tie onto his wrist, running his fingers through his hair a moment while he thought it over. Larry.. wanted to rat himself out just to make him not angry with him? Sal breathed out a sigh through his nose, his own shoulders slumping. Man. How could he ever be mad at Larry for more than a day? Could he ever be angry with Larry for a long period of time? This has been the longest record yet, and maybe it was just because he wanted something to be mad about. Someone to blame. Even though Larry did pressure him, he was owning up to it now. And Lisa would find out since parents talk and she would be even more pissed than Henry.

Larry let out a nervous laugh, "Hey, dude the uh. Long pause here got me _nervous_ , you know."

"Oh- sorry." Sal gave a little nod. "If you wanna rat yourself out by talking to my dad tomorrow.. go for it. I'm not forcing you."

The other teen let out a more broad laugh, reaching over and squeezing Sal's shoulder. "Atta boy, Sally Face! I'll do it for you, dude. Don't go telling everyone I'm such a sap though." He grinned before moving his hand back to shift the truck into gear.

"Buuut I did talk to Ash on my shift. She had a backup plan ready just in case that didn't work." Larry admitted, pressing the pedal and getting the truck rolling.

"Oh yeah, what?"

"Fun beach day at the Peak! For when you're un-grounded, that is."

It has been a while since they had taken the drive out to the Peak. Would it be worth it? Last time they had their spot stolen by those terrible Sandy Creek kids. What a bunch of preppy assholes they were. Even worse than Travis in freshman year, if that was even possible.

"I'd like that, actually. That sounds nice."

"Hell yeah man. I'll beat off those Sandy kids with a bat if I have to. Tell 'em where they can shove that bat if they even think about taking our spot." He looked over at Sal a moment, giving his lopsided grin as they pulled out of the parking lot. " _Oh!_ I had a question for you when you got out of work- You let Ash borrow your sweatshirt dude?"

Watching the store disappear behind them for a moment, Sal blinked at the sudden question. Wait, what? He never let anyone borrow his sweatshirt. It should be on his bedpost. Then, it dawned on him; it hadn't been there this morning. Slowly he started turning pink in the face. Ashley.. took his sweatshirt home? And wore it? She was wearing it when she talked to Larry? His mind was racing, wondering about how it looked on her and if he would even survive if he saw her wearing it with his own eyes.

"I did not." He finally mumbled out, arms crossing over his chest loosely.

"Heh. Sheeee stole your sweeaatshiiirt~" Larry mocked in a sing-song voice. "I was gonna ask for it to give it back to you but she was off pretty quick. Talked to me, bought candy, then left like a rocket." He clicked his tongue a moment, "I can text her for it back?"

"No," He said maybe just a touch too quickly. "She can keep it for a little bit. It's fine."

Sal missed the muttered laugh from under Larry's breath, the taller teen grinning and shaking his head while they drove on the deserted streets of Nockfell to get back home. Larry drove just a little slowly this time around, the street lamps above them going reasonably slow as he drove a few miles under the speed limit. It was a calm night. Sal didn't mind it at all since even if they weren't talking any more on the way back, it was still nice to be around Larry. It was nice not to be mad at him too.


	8. beach day, part one

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sal is no longer grounded and the gang decides to have their little beach day and have some summer fun, but hey why is this a part two? Oh lord.. what will happen?
> 
> CHAPTER ART:  
> instagram-- https://www.instagram.com/p/CF92jYvlvu3/  
> tumblr-- https://kondorks-art.tumblr.com/post/631152111418327040/there-you-are-chapter-eight-art-of-my-fic  
> if you ever want to make fanart, use the tag #ebaypackagescomeinmanysizes!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey guys, chapter eight is here! but i just wanted to let you guys know a couple things!  
> 1) if you want a short sal/ash drabble, i have one posted called HOOKED ON A FEELING! give it a read if youd like! its only a couple pages long, pretty short, but it gives those good vibes. I also have another longer drabble that's larvis and it's 18+ so, view at your own risk! the name for that one is SHAG CARPET
> 
> 2) this is a bit more serious. when i first started thinking about this fic and getting it in production, i was 17. though i never posted it until i was 18 (cause i forgot my archive password tbh,,) and i had a lot of 'underage' tags because, well, originally they were 17 and going into their last year of highschool. i never thought of writing the sexual situations at that point (just wanting that good fluff and drama first) and now that were taking steps closer toward that stuff happening (it isnt happening for a while still), i decided that writing underage sex makes me REALLY UNCOMFORTABLE!! so, from this point forward, the kids are 18. I know it doesn't really make much sense what with them going into their senior year, but birthdays are weird in general so maybe it's sorted out. either way, no one is underage in this fic anymore for my personal comfort.

The apartments were quiet as the two teens made their way to the elevator, Larry pressing the basement then the fourth floor for Sal. The two were on better terms after the short car ride home, the small accomplishment has Larry grinning ear-to-ear. Even if it means his impending doom in the morning. It wasn't that he was scared of what Henry would think. He was scared of what his  _ mom  _ would think. He probably wouldn’t be allowed to use her truck and would have to walk to work from now on. That would suck for sure. It would mean Sal would have to walk, too. Maybe he could find a way around that.

They were soon parting ways, Sal giving a soft 'night' that made Larry's face hurt he was smiling so much. He reassured that he would be up first thing that morning to spill the beans before stepping out and giving a two finger salute. The elevator doors creaked shut and Sal found himself alone in the metal compartment.

Sal’s own apartment was even quieter than the lobby and hallway. At least in the fourth floor hallway he could hear other's TV's or smell the faint aroma of a dinner long since burnt. But when Sal turned the key and nudged open the old door with his hip? Nothing. He heard the soft footsteps of Gizmo in the dark, the familiar loud purr soon following. Shutting the door with his heel, he made sure to lock and deadbolt the door before giving Gizmo a good pet.

Carefully, he went down the hallway once his sneakers were off, sliding down in his socks to make less noise. His head turned to his dad's door, listening and waiting. He didn't hear the clacks of his keyboard, so he assumed that he was relaxing or asleep. Not that Sal was going to try and sneak his phone or walkie talkie.. even though the idea was fairly tempting. No, Sal just wanted to know how quiet he should be. And with his dad presumably asleep, it meant fairly quiet. He could still do other things however, like make himself something to munch on before heading to bed, his usual nightly routine of brushing his hair and washing his face, sterilizing his mask, stuff like that.

Sal's night time routine came and went, going through the motions and trying to give Gizmo attention at the same time. Sal crawled into bed and laid down on his side, Gizmo immediately jumped up and started making biscuits in the blanket before pressing up against his side to sleep. Sal himself soon drifted off, falling into a dreamless sleep.

In the morning, Sal had expected to find his dad getting ready for work and leaving ten minutes from him waking up, instead Sal was surprised to see him still in pajamas, drinking coffee at the kitchen table while reading the paper. The opening of his door had drawn the bearded man’s attention however, eyes flicking to his son for a moment before nodding him over. Ah, geez. Was this going to be another dad lecture like the day previous? He buckled himself in and shuffled over with Gizmo in tow.

"Morning," His dad greeted, a hand reaching down to Gizmo's level to allow the cat to rub against him. Which he did gladly.

"Morning, dad." Sal took a seat at the table, the same strange feeling in his chest. He hated being in trouble, it sucked. The dread and guilt was too much for him.

Henry seemed muddled somehow, his dark blue eyebrows knitted downwards and the wrinkles adorning his forehead creasing more than usual. He did this when he was thinking about something, words or otherwise. It just filled Sal with more unease since he couldn’t tell what was coming next from his dad’s lips. He had joked that he had probably been grounded for a month, and this look was just making him feel like that was all the more true than just a silly joke to ease the mood.

"I've been thinking," Henry started, setting the paper down and taking another sip of his coffee, "And I'm not too mad at you."

Sal blinked at that, eyebrows furrowing. That.. wasn’t what he had been expecting at all.He wasn't mad anymore? Well, not  _ too  _ mad. Which implies that there is still a level of mad in him. It was a good sign, however. Sal genuinely thought it would take forever for his dad to forgive him even a little. 

"You're.. not too mad." Sal repeated, a little dumbfounded still.

"I'm still mad you took my alcohol, but.. you were responsible with it. You didn't drive anywhere and you stayed put. I just want you safe, Sal. That's all a dad wants." Henry looked back at Sal, a sad fondness in his eyes that Sal knew all too well.

A heavy sigh escaped Sal’s lips, leaning against the table and resting his elbows on the cool surface. "I know, I know.. I'm still sorry. I won't touch it again. I promise. I didn't like it anyway."

"And that's why I'm not so mad. I know you won't. Kiddo, you said you felt like you were dying and nearly threw up in your bed. Twice." Henry scratched at Gizmo's head. "And hangovers aren't so pretty either, hm?"

"..No."

"Exactly. I could have told you that. It's just good to learn on your own Sal. Call it dad revenge." He hummed out a little laugh, taking another sip of his coffee.

"Fair enough."

Even though his dad wasn't super mad anymore, he was still grounded for a couple more days. It sucked, though it wasn’t like he couldn't just let him go off the hook. Again, fair. Still, at least it wasn't a month like Sal had assumed it would be. He was pretty much scott free at this point. Hell, he didn't need Larry to fess up even.

_ Knock knock knock. _

Oh, great. Wonder who that could be? What perfect timing Larry tended to have.

Henry raised an eyebrow before getting up out of his chair and moving to the apartment door. He undid the deadbolt and swung open the door, surprised to find Larry standing there. Over his shoulder, Sal was trying to make signals for Larry to fuck off since he was already on good terms, but the other teen didn't seem to see.

"Hey, Mr Johnson." Goddamnit Larry.

Larry then proceeded to awkwardly tell the story of what really happened a couple nights ago, saying that he was the one who encouraged Sal to snag the alcohol and come to his little party so they could just hang out and have a good time. Sal couldn't see the look on his dad's face, but he could tell that Larry was growing more and more nervous the more he rattled on.

"I already knew all that." Henry said calmly, then took a sip of his coffee. Larry's jaw hit the floor, and so did Sal’s.

"Er-" Larry let out a stuttery, awkward laugh before rubbing at his neck. "What do you mean you  _ knew _ ?"

Henry just raised an eyebrow at him before glancing over his shoulder to Sal. "Do you really think that my five foot one, barely one-twenty son could drink almost  _ two  _ bottles of vodka all by himself? Without needing to go to the hospital? Fat chance." Another sip of coffee.

Sal had.. never considered any of that. Huh. He didn't know too much about alcohol. He did know that vodka was really strong. There must be a lot of science stuff surrounding liquor that he had never considered. Well, just more questions when Todd and Neil come back.

"I- right, right." Larry nodded, swallowing another fat lump in his throat. "So you knew."

"Mmmhm."

"And you  _ didn't  _ tell my mom?"

"Tried but she was a little hung over herself that morning, I didn't want to bother her. I assumed you drank with her and she kept you two relitively safe from doing anything stupid."

Craning his neck to be able to see Larry, Sal shook his head violently at him. No more lying. Lisa did not drink with them last night, so lying would have been the worst thing. They could just say it was the two of them and didn’t have to include Ash on all of this. Larry thankfully caught Sal's blue hair and peeked over Henry's shoulder before nodding to himself. He got his drift.

"..She didn't, no. She went out with her friends. We stayed in the apartment, though. I think the stupidest thing we did was watch the news thinking it was cartoons."

That earned a chortle out of the older male, shaking his head. He reached out and placed a hand on Larry's shoulder, giving a little squeeze. "You're a good kid Johnson. Don't take my alcohol again. I can't offer to get you guys beer since it's illegal, just don't get yourselves into trouble. Got it?"

"Loud and clear, sir.”

Fortunately , Larry didn't get grounded and just extend the whole cycle of someone getting grounded once a week. Hopefully the gang would have a bit of a clean streak for the rest of the summer. Lord only knows what other misadventures they'll have and what mischievous things they’ll get up to. it really would have sucked if Larry were to get grounded since his truck would be taken away as a guarantee, meaning that Sal would have to walk to work. And there was nothing he hated more than walking to work. Living in Nockfell literally meant having to walk everywhere unless you had a car, it sucked. Why couldn't the small town settled in the ass of New York have public transit like normal places? Public transport or not, he didn’t have to worry about it too much. He got free rides from Larry and Larry isn't grounded. Really, that’s all that mattered. All that mattered was that Sal still had a couple days to be grounded and even though it sucked, it was only fair. He would be free soon.

It was a crisp late Tuesday afternoon, the sun beating down on him but not too hard. Sal was sitting in the short grass, idly plucking at the blades near his thigh. It was a nice day to go to the beach, and Larry was late. Sal had been sitting here in the lot for maybe twenty minutes now after waiting in the stuffy lobby for almost the same amount of time. He can only drink so many cups of tea from Mr. Addison before growing bored of the small talk through the mail slot and feeling the beads of sweat behind his mask due to lack of air circulation. There were no windows to open in the lobby, it was all just the same, warm air. Eugh. At least out here there was a breeze that made it more bearable.

Finally, he heard the door creak open and almost slam shut. Shoes made quick work, loud footfalls coming up to Sal from behind.

"Sally! There you are, lil buddy. I looked in the lobby and didn't see you?" Larry is soon ducking into his field of vision, a little grin on his face and some sweat pooled above his brow.  The basement was cold, but the elevator was god awful. "I went up to your floor and knocked and didn't get an answer."

"Yeah, I've just been sitting here really. Freshly un-grounded and you're late for my special beach day. I wonder why you haven't been on any dates yet." He ponders, amused while tapping at the chin of his mask.

Larry snorts at that and rolls his eyes, making a witty comeback of 'I totally get dates bro, totally' but they both know that answer. He does not, in fact, get any dates. It isn't like Larry isn't a good guy or anything. Just most girls in the school don't want a lanky stoner who hangs around a band of misfits and who's a misfit himself. They want a football player or a guy who wears different clothes each day and not the same metal band tee. What high expectations.

Soon Sal is being dragged upward by his armpits, Larry guiding him to his feet as if he were a child . It makes him laugh and makes him want to fuck with him and just go limp in his arms. Though they didn't have time on their sides and needed to pick up a third member of their beach day. She's probably fucking pissed she has had to wait this long, unless Larry has already sated the beast by texting her every so often. So instead of messing with Larry and goofing around, he stands on his feet and picks up the small bag of things he has brought for himself. Water bottle, sunscreen, a towel for his body and face just in case. He isn't the type to go underwater or past his hips, but he always has a backup little hand towel. Whatever is in that Lake he does not need in his scars.

They both pile in the scorching heat of Larry's truck, gagging initially before starting it up and practically speeding out towards Ash's place with the windows down. At least the cool breeze helped aerate the truck out.

Pulling into the paved driveway of the familiar house, Sal leans out his window and stares up at it. It was a beautiful house, really. Probably just as old as the apartments. Ashley’s house had at least been touched-up here and there through the decades to not seem ungodly outdated. He’s heard during the sixties it used to be pastel pink. Now, it was a plain and simple oaky brown with darker brown shutters on each side of the large, still outdated vertical sliding windows.

" _ There you two jackasses are! _ " 

Ashley came out of the front door, locking and closing it behind her with a rather rough slam. She stormed towards the truck with her own little bag of things she needed to bring with her. Not to mention a slightly bigger bag full of snacks that she grabbed from the store after getting out of work. What an angel. A very pissed angel at the moment.

"Larry, any reason ya can't pick up ya damn phone every once in a while??" She had put on her best Lisa impression now, swinging open the door to the back and putting her stuff alongside Larry's and Sal's.

"Oh, yeesh. Sorry ma, I get soooo busy texting boys all afternoon and like- wasting my data plan." Larry twirled some hair on his finger, grinning the whole time.

"No but seriously, I thought you canceled or something." She shut the back and opened the door where Sal was sitting. She gave the bluenette a smile that made his knees weak.

"Sorry, sorry. Looking around for blue raspberry here. I swear I could lose him in plain sight if I don't look hard enough." Larry hummed, drumming his fingers against the steering wheel. "But well Miss Ashley?? You're making us late, you know!"

She flipped him off before climbing into the truck, sandwiching Sal snugly between her and Larry now. He had fumbled with the middle buckle before securing it snugly around his waist, Ashley doing the same with her own belt. Off they went, down the roads of Nockfell and heading towards the one that led them to their destination. 

It wasn't a straight-shot to Sandy Creek. They had to take a few different roads here and there and pass through Smartville. Shockingly enough, the people there were dumber than fucking rocks. Or so the teens have heard through the grapevine, anyway. In total, the drive should be around an hour and then some, even with speed limits going up to 50 in certain stretches. And even with Larry going 60 in those areas. The cars are usually moving pretty fast, but today they were oddly slow about a third of the way into their journey. Slowed enough to come to an exact halt.

"Hey, Larry?"

"Hey Ash?"

"We've stopped."

Larry seemed to look around as if he hadn't noticed that he was a foot away from someone's bumper with someone tailing behind him doing the same as well. "Huh. Looks like we are."

In all their years of going down these roads, Larry and Ashley had never seen traffic like this before. It wasn't like these were main roads either, just somewhere between back roads and low-grade highways. But as far as the eye could see, there was a big ol’ pile of traffic. Traffic that Sal was used to, but something that the poor Nockfell residents weren't.

"Probably an accident up ahead," Sal quipped, kicking his legs a little while being careful of not kicking anyone or anything. "That turn is pretty bad up there, you guys know that. And that five-way intersection."

"But that intersection is really far up. Like- miles. Larry is there anyway you can try to back up and turn around? We can try to take the other way."

Larry nodded and stuck his head out the window to estimate how far his front end was with the car in front of him, along with the car behind him. Uh, yeah. Not much room. Less than a foot maybe. And he isn't about to damage the truck trying to back up to get out of traffic.

"No can do, sorry. I mean the people in front of us will be slowly inching forward at some point. So when I get enough room I can weasel my way out of here." But for now, he just put the car in park and sat back, arms crossed over his chest. "For now, we just have to sit here I guess."

"Gee, great.." Ashley sighed, putting her arm out the window to try and catch a non-existent breeze.

"Well, at least I brought something that would help kill the time."

Ash and Larry both shared a quizzical look as they turned their heads to the boy that separated them. From his thinner and less-used grey hoodie, Sal retrieved something, a CD. The album cover was chaotic, but the man in all black playing a violin with a phoropter covering his eyes made her instantly recognize what he was holding. Green Day's 'Insomniac'. The way she lit up made him feel like putty once more.

“You remembered?” Ash asked as Sal popped it into Larry’s CD player, loading before playing the drum intro of Armatage Shanks.

“Of course he did,” Larry snorted, tapping against the steering wheel along to the beat, “It’s Sal Fisher, memory ‘o steel.”

“That’s true.” She smiled, leaning against Sal’s side as the song continued.

As the album played, Larry would take passing glances at the two to see how happy they were listening to the album. He would just hum under his breath, not to the tune of the unfamiliar songs, but to his own little beat. Traffic inched forward and, instead of going with the plan of waiting for enough room to pull out and high-tail it the opposite direction.. The old beat-up truck inched right along in line. It wasn’t like they had a time limit for the day at the beach. As long as the three of them were together, they could be stuck in this traffic until nightfall. Larry felt like he would be totally fine with that.

Funny how things play out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> dont kill me things will get SPICY with the next update, pinkie promise


	9. beach day, part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beach day plans turn into beach night plans, then the unexpected happens. And maybe three teens have to look for car keys naked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> chapter art!  
> instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/CHgMvkDlche/  
> tumblr: https://kondorks-art.tumblr.com/post/634609319564951552/chapter-nine-art-of-my-fic

Larry eventually admitted while they were stuck in traffic and that he really wouldn't have minded being stuck here until midnight since he was with his best buddies. But as much as Ashley would have liked to agree.. she was long since antsy. The AC was on thank god, and sweet music flowed in her ears, but who the hell would want to be stuck in traffic all day?? It was really nice out and they were stuck in this truck, slowly inching up the road. Though once they were further up they could see what had caused it. Yikes- a really bad motorcycle accident. Those things were really dangerous, Ash could never picture herself even getting on a motorcycle, let alone owning one. Well- okay. They were really really cool but driving one on THIS shitty piece of road? Yeah, no.

Despite being a bit bored and antsy, at least she had her two favorite boys on her left. Sal was a little quiet, but Larry made up for it in conversation. He and her could easily go back and forth for hours because they grew up together. Her and Larry just had a personal little bond she rarely had with anyone else. Of course she loved her friends and loved little Sally Face as well, but she always had a fondness for Larry. Now, well, things are a little confusing. Looking between the two of them, they were different in their own ways that just drew the gal in. Larry was a loud mouth and wasn’t afraid to tell someone what was on his mind. He was also the protector of the group, always the first one to throw down if any of his friends were in trouble. While Sal on the other hand.. He could maybe fight. Maybe. But it was really easy to talk to him and he’ll love to listen. He’s a little guy, but sweet. And very observant at many times while Larry seems to gloss things over.

Even though Ashley loved these two, maybe a bit more than a girl should be loving two guys at once.. she can't stand being with them in the truck for this long.

The album ended and they weren't even halfway to their destination. Half an hour of Green Day and Larry didn't want to listen to it again. The brunet pulled out his own CD sleeve from the small console above their heads, handing it to Sal for him to flip through. There were mostly burned CD's with dumb sharpie titles on them, as far as she could see anyway. They all had that metal screamo font, that's for sure. Ash was looking over Sal's shoulder while he had the case in his lap, flipping through the plastic panels after looking at each CD.

"What's on what?" Sal finally piped up after going past the forth 'SUPER ULTRA DEATH METAL' title. None of them had a track list on them or anything that might say what's on them.

"Oh! Uh. I don't know! Probably a ton of SF though, my dude." Larry took his foot off the break and inched forward as the traffic went forward.

"Do you have anything that isn't screamo stuff? I don't want to get a headache.." Ash sighed, gently snagging the case off of Sal's lap while the bluenette did little to protest the action.

Her only response was a snort through his nose and a shake of Larry's head. She'll look herself, then. Since this is also Lisa's truck technically, there has to be other stuff in here, right? Maybe some of Lisa's CD's tucked away behind metal band after metal band. Ashley just has to find those hidden gems. 

Just as suspected, tucked in the very back panel, Ashley found a CD that was unlike the others. There was no screamo font etched onto the CD. Instead, it had slightly cursive, messy handwriting that she recognized in an instant to be Lisa's. It was titled '70's Hits' and the songs on there she couldn't read since the handwriting was just a bit too small. Only one way to find out what it was.

Popping it into the player after taking the Green Day album out, Ashley sat back and relaxed, waiting for whatever songs to fill their ears.

The songs weren't.. bad, per say, but it was for sure not their type of music. It was a change from the shit that Larry had and whatever pop garbage was on the radio. Surprisingly enough, they all sang along to Heart of Glass by Blondie. Terribly off-key as well. There were other songs on there obviously, but she personally didn't know all the names to the tunes she's heard only once or twice. The songs were 70's, that's for sure. Even though they didn't exactly vibe with the genre of music Larry's mom listened to, it was still nice to dick around and sing off-key to the songs, or even just quietly sit and listen as traffic went by.

Again, the album of music didn't last forever. Once that was done they instead switched to the radio, Sal sifting through the stations one after another to try and find something they would all like. It took longer than just listening to the Green Day album again or god forbid a heavy metal CD, but it helped pass the time.

It took twice as long just to get to Peak than it usually would. And since they left Nockfell around three or four, it meant that the place wasn't packed at all. Then again, it meant their 'beach day' turned into a 'beach night'. Not as they had planned but.. they had promised Sal they would come the day he got un-grounded. And Larry is a stickler for promises.

"Welp." Larry parked the car, backing it up so the bed would have a good view of Lake Ontario. "We made it."

"Yeah, and we didn't even get to see the sunset." She pouted, thinking about the camera she had brought with her to take pictures. What's the use now? She can't take pictures in the dark.

"Still a little light out," Sal mentioned, trying to stretch his legs out, "We can at least get out and maybe pretend to swim, or something? I don't know how cold the water gets at night."

Her or Larry didn't know what 'pretending to swim' entailed, but it made them snicker softly anyway. The little guy was right, though. They came all this way, they might as well just get out and poke around a bit. No harm in that. The trio dogpiled out of the car and breathed in the fresh air, stretching their achy limbs. Larry had moved to the back to grab a snack to munch on while Sal and Ashley leaned against the edge of the bumper. The two faced the lake, their hair swaying in the cool breeze. Dusk was coming quickly and the sky was fading from it's brilliant oranges and yellows into soft, murkey purples and dark blues. If Ashley looked straight up and squinted past the clouds, she could make out small hints of stars. It was really pretty out here, during the day and the night.

"It's really pretty out here," Sal seemed to speak her thoughts, looking outwards onto the lake, "I think I like it at night more, though. Less sunburns, that's for sure."

Ashley laughed softly at that, smiling over at her friend, "That's true. Just sucked that we couldn't spend the whole day here. I still have a curfew. Hopefully the traffic isn't bad getting back."

Sal nodded thoughtfully, scratching at his jaw underneath his mask, "Wouldn't be fun if we took turns getting grounded."

"Mmhm.."

The two looked back out onto the lake, watching the strong ripples towards the center moving along with the wind. Though something behind them startled them, the sound of steel-toed boots banging against metal.

When they both came back from jumping a foot in the air, Ashley and Sal whipped their heads around to look behind them, seeing that Larry had climbed up into the bed of the truck, a bag of Cheetos in hand.

"I just had the best fucking idea you two."

"We are NOT doing that"

Ashley crossed her arms over her chest tightly, looking away with a blush creeping up on her cheeks.

"What! Why not? We wouldn't be able to see each other at all!" Larry squatted down to be level with the two outside of the truck, "Wouldn't see shit and if I did I would look away because I'm a proper gentleman."

"We  _ aren't  _ skinny dipping!"

Larry let out a soft clicking noise, humming afterward before jumping out of the truck. He landed on the ground and stood, already starting to tug his shirt off.

"Well I didn't come here for nothing and I think skinny dipping would be fun as shit. Feel free to follow my lead, either of you." He shot Ashley and Sal a raised eyebrow, letting his shirt hang over his shoulder as he worked on his boots next.

It really didn't take long for Larry to disrobe right then and there and head down towards the lake. Ashley had kept her eyes averted, but she had no idea if Sal had. He hadn't said a word as Larry had been suggesting swimming in their birthday suits, but glancing over she could see that he was taken aback by the suddenness of it. She could also see the hot flush of his ears and down to his neck.

Once Larry got to the water and was waist deep, Ashley allowed herself to glance. He was waving his arms, a bit too distant to hear what he was saying to them.

"Sal. Should we..?" Ashley started, rubbing at her arm. "I wouldn't want this to be uncomfortable for you."

"I think," He started, pausing as he stared out at his friend in the water, "-That i'm going to join him. But you don't have to. I don't want  _ you  _ uncomfortable, Ash."

He seemed to hesitate for a moment before reaching his hand over to squeeze at Ashley's hand to reassure her. His hands were big, she always forgot that about him, but they were also warm. And a bit sweaty.

Sal then went off to take off his sweatshirt and shoes first before the rest of his clothes followed. Unlike Larry, he didn't leave them scattered around on the tar at least. He left them hanging in a pile on top of the tailgate before going to quickly join Larry.

And Ashley couldn't lie.

She took a peek that time. Even with the dark quickly setting in.. Sal Fisher had a really cute butt.

The two of them were soon in the water, laughing and splashing around. She wanted to yell out and ask if the water was cold, but she already knew the answer just seeing how scrunched up Sal got once he was waist-deep.

Now being the odd duck out, Ashley stood there, alone at the truck. She kept looking around to make sure no one else was around, looking left, then right, then left again just to be a hundred percent sure. There were no cars at all, no traffic whizzing by on the nearby road. It wouldn't.. kill her if she did this. Just this once. No one would see them after all.

After another minute of debating in her head, she finally bit the bullet and tugged her shirt off to join them. From the water, she could hear Larry hooting in encouragement.

The water was really cold. Really really cold. Ashley's arms stayed crossed over her chest as she got in, shuddering as the lake water went up to her hip bones. She wanted to go in deeper to cover her chest, but she would be damned if she let this cold water hit her there.

"Atta girl!" Larry laughed a little, grinning, "I told you it was dark enough that we couldn't see. I mean I saw you nearly trip on that rock up there but that's totally different."

"For some reason I don't belive that that was the only thing you could see," She spoke flatly and moved one arm to brush hair away from her face, "This was a dumb idea. This is dumb."

"May be dumb but isn't it fun?" Larry asked, leaning in a little too close. She could feel his eyes wander the curves of exposed skin and it made hair stand on end and goosebumps form slowly.

"I think it's kinda fun." Sal piped in, shrugging his shoulders.

Larry gave him a clap on the back, grinning.

So there they stood, waist-deep in Lake Ontario at nearly 8 at night. They had played a couple rounds of blind Marco Polo, but it was proven to be pointless since there weren't many directions for them to go in without sinking lower into the cold water. Plus with how quiet it was, one could hear the splashes from the other two getting away.

Maybe half an hour into their fun skinny-dipping shenanigans, Sal suddenly stopped and told both of them to shush. Instantly, the two brunettes canned up to hear whatever he was hearing. The sound of tires on pavement with some kind of music. Looking back up to where Larry's truck was, headlights soon appeared and parked a couple spots away. Fuck. Was it a cop? Ashley's blood ran cold as he glanced at both Sal and Larry. Not wanting to be exposed, she sort of hid herself behind Larry and he protectively moved an arm across her.

"Well well!" A voice called out as the music called out, "Looks like those fucking Nockfell rats are the ones making the rukus up here."

"Ugh-" Larry scowled. It was those Stupid Sandy Creek kids, so stuck-up. " 'S not like anyone was using this place at night! Why don't you beat it before I come up there and beat you?"

Obviously there was a bit of a buffer as the Sandy Creek kids deciphered what the hell Larry had said since the waves were a bit louder now. As soon as it was clear, the main jock snorted and held up a pair of boxers with his forefinger, "Oh yeah? You gonna fight me naked you freak?"

"Fuck yeah I will!" He shot right back, already starting to move out of the water before Sal tugged him back.

"Larry- bad idea." Sal was instantly muttering, tugging him right back.

The Sandy Creek kids were moving around, collecting the pieces of clothing and making Ashley freeze as they picked up her bikini top and flaunted it. Were they taking their clothes?

"Looks like you won't be needing these anymore!" A different guy called out as they started to pile back into their car.

"HEY!"

Larry had instantly lunged himself out of the water, starting to make quick work back up the hill to try and get their clothes back. No use. Cars tend to be faster than naked stoners on foot. The Sandy Creek kids sped off, howling at the 'little Johnson' and blasting their shitty pop music.

Slowly, Sal and Ash emerged from the water and shivered at the wind that whipped their bare skin. They walked up the hill and joined Larry's side. He was fuming, pacing back and forth as he looked for the keys to his truck. Not only did they take their clothes, but did they also take their keys too? It took another ten minutes to find them, apparently having been thrown out into the empty parking lot. Not stolen at least, thank god.

When the truck was unlocked, Sal opened the back door and grabbed a towel for each of them to make themselves decent. They were all quick to wrap themselves in the towels, accidentally catching small glances of one another with clears of their throats and flushed faces.

"We should.. get back home." Ashley finally said, hugging the towel tight around herself.

"But we can't just drop you off naked, Ash. I feel like your parents would shoot us." Sal brought up a good point, making her eyebrows furrow as she tried to think of something.

The three teens pondered their options as they all piled into the car, feeling way too close to one another than before. It was the same amount of distance, just with less clothes involved. It made everyone in the truck quiet and tense.

Larry was the first to speak up after lighting a cigarette, opening the window on his side, "We can break into the basement from around back. Connects to my room and I can give you guys clothes to wear. And you can go home from there Sal. I'll make sure Ash gets home before her curfew. Easy."

Ashley let out a short sigh, rolling down her window as well. "That will work, yeah. Let's just hope there's no traffic on the way back. And no cops if you plan on gunning it."

"Probably shouldn't gun it. We could get pulled over. And we're naked."

Another good point from Sal tonight. They were soon driving back home to Nockfell, feeling defeated that their shit was stolen and embarrassed since they all caught their own glances at one another. Ash wasn't sure what Sal and Larry saw of her, but she saw.. a bit of them. The faintest hint of abs Sal had, the strong thighs she's never seen from Larry. How both their carpets match the drapes. But she didn't see anything else, she swore on it.

The ride back home was quiet as hell. No music, no talking, and thankfully no traffic at all. Driving back into Nockfell was as smooth as butter and breaking into the basement was surprisingly easy according to Larry. He had been the one to do it and brought back a shirt and sweatpants for each of his friends to wear. Sal had changed in the back while Ashley did in the front, making sure they couldn't see each other at all out of respect.

Finally, their crazy night was over. Sal went back up to the apartments after wishing them good night and grabbing his stuff. That left Ashley and Larry on a semi-less awkward car ride to her place, but still a bit awkward nonetheless.

"Do you think he had a good time?" Larry finally spoke up when he pulled up into the driveway and parked.

"I'm- not sure. I mean we did get our shit stolen." She reached into the back to grab her own bag. Larry caught her arm, holding onto it gently. The small movement and the lock of their eyes made her stomach do a flip.

"Did  _ you  _ have a good time?" He asked, soft brown eyes boring into her green ones. 

It made her swallow, bending her arm to tuck some hair behind her ear. The porch light flared to life, alerting that her parents were close enough to see them. Larry got the hint and let go, allowing her to grab her bag and open the door.

"I had a great time, but now you owe me something."

Larry blinked at that, eyebrows furrowing, "And what might I owe you now, Miss Campbell?"

"A new bikini, you ass." She let the door slam as a grin spread on her features, bringing her bag up to loop around her shoulder before walking up to the porch to head inside. Five minutes before curfew ended, too. Hopefully her parents wouldn’t be so pissed at cutting it close. Or at the fact that she isn’t wearing her clothes.


	10. welcome home, nerds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> todd and neil finally come back to nockfell after a long two weeks vacation away from their dumbass friends. they missed them, of course. thw two gays also give sal a bit of advice on his own love-life

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> art for this chapter!  
> insta: https://www.instagram.com/p/CIvoZuQFIwJ/  
> tumblr: https://kondorks-art.tumblr.com/post/637404138031939584/im-sick-so-just-drawing-this-simple-thing-was-a
> 
> sorry this chapter took a touch longer to post! i was literally finished with it and ive been really, really sick since december started. it was really hard to get the motivation to draw art for this chapter and, even now, i really dont like it but i just wanted to get it done. but i hope yall like the chapter!!

A few days had passed after the whole skinny dipping situation and, while Sal would like to believe he had played it very cool in the moment, he was still a nervous wreck days after the incident. It isn't just everyday that one is fully naked with their crushes. Thank god afterwards they had towels, not to mention Larry sneaking into the basement to lend clothes to them. It was really nice of him and Sal appreciated not having to go up to his own apartment in only a towel. He had gone to bed almost immediately when he got home, accidentally wearing Larry's shirt and sweatpants to bed.

And maybe, just maybe.. he didn't exactly plan on  _ returning  _ the clothes either. If Larry had asked him about the clothes he would hand them over, but they were ungodly baggy on him and just felt comfy. There was a splash of yellow paint on the grey sweats and the shirt smelled like Larry's shampoo for some odd reason, but Sal just felt comfy in it, sue him. He also couldn't help but wonder if the same went for Ashley who had 'borrowed' his sweatshirt after their little party in the treehouse, only to never give it back. It wasn't like it was his favorite or anything, but it just made him wonder if she found it comfy the same way he found Larry's stuff comfy. And then he thought of Larry wearing his clothes and it was enough to snap him out of his Ashley daydreams. His clothes would be way too tight on Larry and the imagery alone was enough to make him chuckle.

That didn't mean the daydreams went to other places, however. It was dark out when they skinny dipped, but he still caught.. glances of things. Mostly their feet because he didn't dare to look up any further, but he saw how ungodly hairy Larry's legs were and just how  _ smooth  _ Ashley's were in comparison. Sal is a gentleman, he would never want to make his friends uncomfortable for a quick glance. He didn't know what the others saw of him, but he didn't want to know either. He would just be a blushing goddamn mess and be so nervous if they had told him the things they saw on him.

  
  


Sal shifted as he stood up on a chair, standing on his tiptoes with brightly-colored streamers wrapped on his shoulders and the end of a banner in his hand. The idea of giving Todd and Neil a 'welcome home' party had been well-received with the rest of the group and was happening in Todd's apartment. Janice and Ray gave them the go-head so long as they didn't step foot in their bedroom. Everyone knew they grew weed, but they would be respectful and keep out of their private quarters anyway.

"Sal dude- a little higher up if you can? Oh-  _ jeez-  _ don't fall over never mind. I'll go lower." Chug flinched as he watched the bluenette try to go higher up on the wall. He was on the other side of the banner and fixed his end by securing it with a thumbtack a few inches down where it had been originally.

Sal nodded and eased up his arms a bit as Chug brought it down lower, tacking his end and starting with the streamers over his shoulders. "I was just thinking we could order pizza, not make it like a birthday party." He let out a short laugh and shook his head, looking over what the banner said. Maple and Larry had painted it and it lovingly read in cursive and metal font respectively; 'WELCOME HOME NERDS'.

"Yeah, but this will make them laugh at least! Do you think they missed us?" The other reached over to help Sal with the streamers, taking one end of the long pieces to secure on his end of the banner. "Or do you think they were too busy making out?"

Sal couldn't help but laugh outwardly at that. " _ Gross _ . I don't want to think about them making out, dude. But yeah, who wouldn't miss their gang of dumbasses?"

Chug responded with a chuckle and a 'fair enough' before continuing to help with streamers and decorations. They weren't exactly in charge of the decor, but Ash still wasn't here yet, Maple was getting the food, and Larry was getting them at the airport. At least there wasn't much decorating to do. Just the sparse streamers, the banner, and a ton of chairs. Only three people could be sitting on Todd's couch and there were seven people at this party, not to mention the planned movie night as well. Sal and chug grabbed cushions from their own apartments so the floor would be more comfortable. So really, not too much decorating to do.

The sound of knocking on the door startled the two however, both looking at one another. Chug had thumbtacks in his mouth, so Sal took the duty of carefully getting off the chair to go answer the door. He hoped it wasn't Larry, since not everyone was there yet. Instead, he found Maple and Ashley at the door, both carrying bags from the store. Sal immediately stepped aside so the two could drop their cargo off on the nearby coffee table.

"Ugh- that's so heavy-" Ash complained, rubbing at her arms after she set her bags down.

"I took more than you, string bean." Maple chuckled, looking up to Chug on the chair, "Oh- babe-  _ please  _ don't fall down from there." Chug pretended to fall, which just made Maple roll her eyes.

Sal started to take out the things the two ladies had brought, setting them back on the coffee table. "Did you guys see Larry's truck on the way over?" 

"Mn- no actually. Maybe he's running late?" Maple answered, starting to shoo Sal away so he could continue with decorating.

Apparently no one knew the whereabouts of the tallest guy in their gang, but they all hoped he got to the airport safely and got their other friends as well. It's been a while since they saw Todd and Neil.. they missed them of course! How could they bear without the two smartest boys in their group? Their own brain cells are already gone, they need to kill someone else's for once.

Just in the nick of time, the four teens set together everything for the party just as they heard a key unlocking the door. Larry had brought them sure, but he had lied and said Todd's mom left something for Lisa and he was just going to pick it up. To Todd and Neil's shock, there was instead a small group of familiar faces inside awaiting them. Despite the initial shock of it all, the two smiled and walked into the group hug that the group demanded. Not that Larry wasn't pushing them forward or anything.

After everyone managed to untangle their limbs like some sad octopus, they were all very eager to know what Neil and Todd were up to at their convention. And if there were any fires that started from explosions. Turns out, there were sadly none at all. They listened anyway, but the lack of explosions was kind of lame.

"It wasn't just a science convention, you know," Todd stated with a little laugh, pushing his glasses farther onto his nose, "It was a robotics convention."

"AKA, badass robots fighting each other until the other is scrap metal." Neil clarified. "It was pretty awesome."

"And yet there were  _ NO  _ explosions at all.." Chug groaned dramatically, earning a laugh from the others.

Everyone sat down in the living room while Todd and Neil explained more about the convention. They also described what some of the bots battling could do as well and, while none exploded, some did catch on fire. It sounded awesome. The two were there to support a couple friends of theirs but sort of lost track of how many days they were there. Oops. They shared a glance with one another and Sal could see a faint blush on Todd's cheeks. He caught on and maybe the other's did as well.

"How many times did you guys touch hotdogs?" Maple asked, snickering under her breath. That made Todd turn as red as his hair and Neil started to cackle.

"Oh my god-" He wiped some tears from his face, trying to contain his laughter now, "I'm so glad your friends are my friends too."

The party was laid back and just a fun little get-together for all of them to have. Nothing too insane, but a nice unwind from the hectic traveling and bot-battling the two had been through over the last couple of weeks. Everyone was glad they had fun, but felt better now that their circle of friends was close once more.

Towards the end of the party, Chug had already left to bring Maple home. She had been feeling sick and didn't want to ruin anything by puking on the carpet or something. Ash had left soon after due to curfew, and another hour later Larry left since he had to help his mom with something early in the morning. To be respectful, Sal did help his two friends clean up the little mess of pizza boxes and drinks. Though as he helped, there was something itching in the back of his head.

"You've been quiet tonight." Todd finally brings up as Sal enters the kitchen with the last half-drunk soda bottle. "Did you not miss us?"

"No- no," He set the bottle down, shaking his head, "Of course I did man. You two are the only smart guys in the group, of course we missed you."

Neil shook his head, furrowing his eyebrows. "You guys aren't dumb or anything. Just have... interesting ideas for fun, is all. But I have to agree, pretty quiet all night."

"It's nothing bothering me but I just. Have a question?"

The two boyfriends looked at each other before pulling themselves a seat at the kitchen table, facing Sal. It felt like a duo therapy session with how they were posed and it was enough to make Sal snicker himself.

Sal then told them about the party that happened between him, Larry, and Ash while they were off at their convention. Sal didn't mention Larry saying he was bi, but he did say he was. They were supportive of him, but he doesn't know how to continue forward.

See, Todd and Neil were well aware of the crush Sal had on Ash when it bloomed. It was pretty obvious puppy love. Though they did notice Sal slowly acting that way with Larry as well. They had just assumed it to be a case of Sal not being able to decide, they had no clue Sal actually wanted to date both of them.

"You're asking how you could ask both of them out?" Todd asked slowly, looking a little uneasy about the question. "Sal I don't really know if it's a good idea?"

Neil gave a little solemn nod as well. "Yeah, I wouldn't want you or them to get hurt. I mean you never know man. Larry or Ash could get offended that you can't decide. You could lose a really good friendship."

Leaning against the counter top, Sal had his arms crossed over his chest loosely with his shoulders slumped. He seemed to hesitate before speaking before finally spitting it out. "What should I do then? I don't know if they like me or not. What if I make the wrong choice and hurt the other one?"

There was a pause between the three of them as they tried to figure out a good solution that would help the situation. Ash or Larry? Or somehow both?

Neil finally snapped, a grin on his face, "Why not just ask both out on a date on different dates? Keep it casual and just see if something happens, you know? And if something does happen between you and one of them.."

"Then that's who I should go with?" Sal continued.

Neil nodded quickly with a thumbs up. They both looked to Todd for his input.

"I mean- it's worth a shot?"

Then it was settled. Sal was going to ask Ash out on one day and then Larry on another. They both wouldn't know about it either, which would make things a little tricky on his end. He just naturally tells the two everything. Maybe he could lie and say he picked up a shift on a day off? There's also another problem of where to bring them. He wouldn't want to do a fancy restaurant or anything or something too obvious. Something casual. And within walking distance for Ash since neither of them could drive.

He had thanked the two for their help and finished putting chairs aside to clear up the living room for them as well before heading up a floor to retire for the night. Gizmo was purring and rubbing on him the second he walked through the door and, faintly, he could hear the loud clacks of his dad's computer as he worked.

It would take some brain power and some actual courage to ask not one, but two people out, but Sal felt like he could manage this. Easy, right? Just asking both of his crushes on a date.. nothing to freak out over..

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> also i forgot to say! i started this fic back in February not super sure where it would take me. i know the plot i had in mind but really, ive never kept up with something this long and ive been enjoying it a lot. thank you guys so much for the continued support and the love youve been sharing with this work. i dont want to hope anything for 2021, but i personally am going to try to make the year better for those who read my stories and look at my artwork. even if 2021 isnt so bad, my goal is to make it better by making people forget whatever the hell happens. god speed everyone, ill see you next year with chapter 11


	11. build-a-date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sal starts off the dating process with Ash. and it's cute what he has planned at the mall for them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> art for this chapter!  
> insta: https://www.instagram.com/p/CJ1K8NylwoC/  
> tumblr: https://kondorks-art.tumblr.com/post/639851179798560768/chapter-11-art-for-my-fic  
> if you guys ever want to make art for chapters, use the hashtag #ebaypackagescomeinmanysizes ! i know its.. a lot, but im working on getting a shorter hashtag that isnt already in use!

After the party, Ashley returned home minutes before her curfew. Ever since the treehouse party with the boys, her parents had been keeping a closer eye on her and what time it was. Before that, there weren't any super hard curfew times. As long as they knew where she was and around what time she would be getting home, they never seemed to mind. In her head, her parents didn't like that she mainly spent time with guys these days. She hung out with Maple, of course, but she was really the only other girl in the group. Her parents wouldn't mind her hanging around Todd and Neil all the time, but instead she chose the two kids that get into the most trouble and do dumb shit constantly.

Her parents could suck it up. Sal and Larry may look like dumbass delinquents, but they're probably two of the nicest guys she has ever met. Well, including Todd, Neil, and Chug of course. 

Outside of her normal Nockfell life, the world continued to spin. Ash still had to get up at the ass-crack of dawn, get a ride into work, and do crummy customer service. She hated having a higher-pitched voice and a different style of clothing just to appeal to the girls that shopped where she worked. The place she works, Deo's, is pretty much like a Target but minus the groceries. It's just clothes that claim to be 'fashionable', but really just feels like stuff thirty year-old moms would wear. Ungodly high-waisted jeans and horrible sweaters galore. It's amazing anyone her age steps foot in here without their mother towing them along. Then again, half the store was pretty much a clearance section. Good place to get your mom something cheap for a forgotten birthday gift, or something for your friend that you don't like that much. 

What sucked the most about today's work day however was that it was a Friday. A golden, sunny Friday evening that she was supposed to have off. She always has Friday off. She was called in cause she owed a coworker a favor and the girl was sick as a dog. Ash believed it too, since this girl loved working here. Even though she didn't get out until two, Ashley was getting paid for this. More money in the bank, hell yeah.

Making her way around the small mall store and politely assisting customers when needed, she rounds a rack of clothes and nearly tumbles into someone. They had been hidden so well with their height and both of them nearly fell over.

"Oh! I'm so sorry ma'a- Sal?" Ash blinked as she swiped some brown locks away from her eyes. She locks onto the dual-colored prosthetic she's grown accustomed to for years, confusion spreading across her face, "What are you doing here?"

"Uh," The shorter fumbled with his hands a moment before giving a little awkward wave. "Fancy seeing you here."

She couldn't help but snort at that, shaking her head. "Yeah smarty, I work here. Did- you actually want to get something here? Or were you looking for me?"

Sal seems to hesitate and she can see his eyes dart around her face before landing on a rack of sweaters. His fingers felt the material before instantly recoiling. This store wasn't for anyone with major texture issues, that's for sure.

"Looking for you. Went by your house and your dad said he dropped you off at work this morning."

"Ugh," Ashley huffs, looking around before leaning in to whisper, "Yeah, usually I wouldn't be fucking working on a friday.. Wish I could hang out with you lil guy, but I'm here all afternoon."

"And that's fine! Totally fine." Sal waves his hands a little almost in defense. "I just- wanted to ask you something in person. Not over text."

Well, geez. It must have been pretty important for him to talk to her in person. She looks around again and nearly winces. The manager is staring her dead on and she picks up the sweater from the rack, holding it up to Sal to see if it would fit. Sal doesn't flinch, just looks down at it.

"A little itchy for me. And far too purple." He comments.

"Just making it look like I'm working. What's your question?"

"I- wanted to.. askyouonadate?"

It was so quick she almost didn't catch it, but her cheeks glow pink when it processes. She sets the sweater back down on the rack after folding it neatly. It feels like the world is just slowing down around them. He wanted to go on a date? 

"Of course I would, Sal." Ash responds softly, "Uhm- listen. I get out at two. I have.. no idea how you got here, but do you think you can wait around until then?"

"Yes." Sal blurts out quickly, hands on his hoodie strings as he pulls them a bit. She could see Sal's ears get ruby red, something that nearly makes her laugh.

She smiled warmly down at him. "Alright, sounds good. Now pretend to seem interested in stuff so my ass doesn't get fired, kay?"

As she walks away, she can hear him chuckle softly under the prosthetic. It's a noise that sends happy tingles through her chest. His laugh was always so cute and quiet. Everything about him was just.. different. Sal Fisher was something else, and that's what she liked about him. He had his moments where he was a jumble of nerves, but he also had times where he stood up for himself and his friends. And that's something she could admire for sure.

Even as Ashley continued working, she could still see hints of blue half an hour after she had spoken to him. Someone else had gone over asking if he needed help and, even though she was out of earshot, she could tell he was a stumbling, bumbling mess. Poor guy. She hadn't said to stay in the store, just to pretend to look at stuff! He's too anxious for his own good and he better not walk out with something. All this shit sucks and she knows he has at least some fashion sense.

Two had finally struck the clock and, despite working a full shift, Ash felt pretty excited and energized. She was going to hang out- well- go on a date with Sal. A date! She couldn't believe it was happening since she had assumed she would be the one to ask first. He seemed too nervous to be the one asking, but it looks like she had guessed wrong. After grabbing her sweatshirt and clocking out, she left the store and went into the hallway of the mall. Now if she were Sal Fisher, where would she be..

She had checked Hot Topic, Spencers, and the food court. No Sal to be seen. Walking along the different halls that led to other stores, she kept checking her phone. No new messages, either. Had Sal ditched her? There was a small pain in her heart just thinking of the option.

Just before she was about to text her dad to come pick her up, she had taken one final look around. Something had caught her eye though and made her curious. She had seen a mess of blue hair enter Build-A-Bear, the store for toddlers to create their own stuffed animal friends. She walked up to the store front and, upon closer inspection, she found that Sal had, in fact, entered the Build-A-Bear.

"Sal." Ashley walked into the store, putting her phone in her pocket. "You got some nerve being around these parts." She puts on a fake drawl, just to show she had been joking. It makes her snicker softly afterwards.

"Oh-" The shorter jumped and spun around, an embarrassed look in his eyes. "I thought I would have more time-"

"And where's your phone? I thought you stood me up. Super sad, you know." She laughed gently and looked around. She had never been in this store before but it was.. kinda cute. A nostalgic kind of cute. 

"My phone?" He checked his pockets a moment before slumping his shoulders. "Forgot it in dad's car, I think. Sorry if you've been uhm... text..ing."

Sal's words trail off and it confuses Ash for a moment, tilting her head at the teen.

"Is that- my sweatshirt?"

Oh, fuck. Ash had forgotten that she may or may not have snagged it after the whole treehouse party. What? It's comfy! Plus it actually fits her decently. If she had taken something from Larry, the sleeves would have had to be rolled up four or five times. Sal's short arms were a perfect match.

"Uhm- maybe!" She laughed a little, starting to unzip it. "Do you want it back? Sorry if it smells like gross girl cooties or whatever."

"NO!" Sal paused, clearing his throat. "No. It looks.. way better on you than me. You can keep it." He fumbled his hands again before looking around. "Anyway, I thought we could do something you've never done before?"

"Pff- how do you know I've never made a stuffed bear before?" Ashley thinks it's cute though, looking at all the unstuffed bear skins. Actually that's more terrifying than anything.

"I remember you saying it."

When the fuck was the last time she talked about this place? Maybe the last time they all hung out at the mall? Right, right. Todd and Neil were saying how they had made a cute scientist bear together and how the owner gave them a dirty look for being cutesy together. But that was maybe a year or so ago. Sal remembered that? It made her cheeks flush a soft pink.

Sal guided her through the oh-so intricate and complicated steps of making your own stuffed animal. He had chosen a classic brown bear while she had gotten a soft blue bunny. They both picked out the small felt hearts to place inside the animals before a worker filled them up with stuffing for them. Since the worker was a teen themselves, they were giving Sal and Ash looks the whole time they were eagerly creating their stuffed animals. Probably thought they were freaks, but that's alright. She'll be a freak with Sal any day.

Their stuffed animals were brought to life and they wandered into the section where you can dress up your new friend. Sal put a leather jacket on his bear and called it good, while Ashley chose a pair of denim overalls for hers. It looked cute, but it was missing something she just couldn't put her finger on.

A prosthetic, maybe

"Yours looks really cute." Sal commented, his voice breaking her trail of thought.

"Aw- thanks. Yours is adorable too." She reached over to adjust the collar on the leather jacket, flipping the collar up. Nice. "But- I wasn't really expecting this as a date."

Sal's face snaps to hers and she can see worry in his eyes. "Is it bad? I'm- sorry. I should have asked you where you wanted to-"

"No!" She cuts him off, setting her bunny down. "No, not in a bad way. It just feels like we're just hanging out. Not on a date."

"Isn't that a good thing?"

She opens her mouth to respond but shuts it, smiling down at the other. Yeah, she supposed it was a good thing. they were so comfortable with each other, after all. And while she's been on a few dates before, she had kind of figured Sal wouldn't want to take her out to a fancy restaurant or something. He doesn't like eating in public with his prosthetic, and she can't blame him for it. She would never stare, but that doesn't mean people around them don't.

"You're right." She hums, smoothing a hand over his shoulder and plucking a Gizmo fur out of his shirt. "It is a good thing."

"But I did get you.. something else. I had a lot of time to think it over while I was here."

Sal sets his own leather-clad stuffed bear down to dig into his back pocket. He had gotten her something? Ashley was just starting to protest when he pulled out a small, thin box. The name on top of it was familiar, a store inside the mall that sold really nice jewelry for good prices.

"You didn't have to-"

"You'll like it." She could hear the smile in his voice. "Trust me."

The box is then put in her hands and she opens it up, gasping quietly what was inside. It was a silver bracelet with one singular green gem embedded into it. It was simple in design, but beautiful.

Sal rubbed at his neck a little as she gawked, "I know jewelry like this isn't typically your style, but I thought of you when I saw it. Your eyes look the exact same shade of green."

It was cheesy, but she smiled wide anyway. "It's amazing. I'll wear it forever, Sal." She was already taking it out of the box, clasping it on her wrist and looking at it. "No more jewelry though unless it's sick-ass studded chokers or bracelets, kay? I would hate for you to spend too much on me."

"Yeah, fair." He shrugged and looked over the bracelet. She could tell he was smiling with the squint of his eyes. "But I just thought this one 'girly' thing would suit you well.

"It really does." She stepped closer and leaned down a few inches, pressing a kiss to the forehead of his prosthetic. "You really know how to treat a punk gal though, Sal. You're so sweet."

Paying for their bears and heading out of the store, Ash texts her dad to come pick them up. As they wait, she gets the typical smoothie that her father always demanded when picking her up. Her and Sal also get a milkshake and split some fries since neither were too hungry. This all feels so natural with Sal and she enjoys the not-so chaotic moments alone with him. She's curious as to why he suddenly wanted to go on a date with her, but hopefully they can have many more after this one.


	12. water tower date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sal has another plan for a date, but Larry has a better plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> read end notes for a sappy message!  
> art for this chapter (links)  
> tumblr: https://kondorks-art.tumblr.com/post/644107809817034752/my-fic-is-a-year-old-today  
> insta: https://www.instagram.com/p/CLuJ2_yFGW7/

~~Now introducing art _in_ the chapter~~

"So," Todd starts after dragging his lips away from his cup of tea. "How did things go with Ashley?"

"Ohmygosh-" Sal was still giddy about it all. Despite Ash not exactly kissing his face, he could still feel the slight pressure on his prosthetic, "I think it went really, really well."

It was the morning after Sal had just gotten back from his little date with Ash and he had been acting like it all just happened. Since Todd had been at work when he had gotten home yesterday, Sal decided to bug him about it this morning. 

"That's good, that's good." The ginger nodded, leaning against his computer desk. "Have you thought about what you might want to do with Larry at all?"

Sal paused at that for a moment before shaking his head no. "Not really. I didn't exactly have a plan with Ash, to be honest. I just kind of.. winged it." He gave a shrug, "So I was thinking of doing the same with Larry."

Todd blinked at him, "Other than with Ashley, have you- ever actually been on a date, Sal?"

"Nu-uh."

"...I see."

Todd moved in his chair to be facing Sal fully now, who had been sitting on the bed vibrating at this point. Todd then explained to Sal that while his date with Ash was wonderful, it didn't exactly sound like a date at all. It just sounded like hanging out. Sal had agreed, but added that that's what Ashley liked about it. That it wasn't your typical run-of-the-mill date where it was a walk on the beach, or a romantic candle-lit dinner. Instead they had built stuffed animals that were very cute and just enjoyed each other's time. That's what a date should be, right? Maybe minus the stuffed animals, of course.

"I think you should try something more thought-out with Larry. And maybe a second date with Ashley that is more 'run-of-the-mill'." Todd reached over and cradled his mug in his hands once more. "See what happens."

"Thanks Todd," Sal stood up from the bed, "I know it's a lot, but I appreciate you dude."

"Not a problem at all, Sal." But once the blue-haired teen sought his way out and Todd heard the apartment door shut, he let out a sigh and took another sip of his tea. "This isn't going to work.."

A small, irritated grumble leaves his lips as Larry sits down on the edge of his bed. He was covered in paint from a previous painting session, but he had been interrupted minutes prior with his mom yelling how there had been another package up at the main office. And, of course, that he had to go get it. Water under the bridge, he understood that she was a busy woman who had to manage a whole building, but as of late there had been more venom laced into her tone. Why, one may ask? Curiosity.

Ever so slowly, he had been receiving the dumb shit he had bought off of ebay for Ash and Sal. Since he doesn't typically buy things off the internet, Lisa was naturally curious as to what they were. He just kept saying they were gifts, but never said for who. Maybe she thought some were for herself? Either way, he could tell she was getting tired of getting phone calls from Mr. Addison that there was yet another box in her son's name.

And of course, catching onto this, Larry got one last thing just for his mom as a little gift. She's such a trooper. He had no idea when it was coming, though, so she would have to stick it out for just a little bit longer.

Mom presents aside, he stared down at the box in his hands. It had an unfamiliar address on it from Florida with a lame-sounding town. There were dents here and there on the corners, and barely enough tape to seal the damn thing. With each package he had received, Larry had been making sure that they were actually the thing he had bought and not a box full of rocks. He never thought of someone scamming another like that until Sal had mentioned it forever ago. So far, all the packages had the right contents in them. This one by far was going to be the icing on the goddamn cake.

Now, this present was very special. Four weeks ago, the three teens hopped onto his computer and discovered the magic that was the horny side of ebay. Larry had obviously saved these items for later, bid on them, and managed to snag quite a handful. A few were outbid, but that was fine. As long as he got the one thing each of his friends liked, that was all ears to him.

Here he sat, anticipating to peel off the tape of one of the last packages. This was the one he had waited on the longest, eagerly awaiting for it's arrival in the mail. And now here it was, hopefully, in the flesh.

Larry was careful peeling the tape off of the box, the flaps popping open on each side to reveal a mountain of packing peanuts. He had caught a glimpse of black leather and knew for a fact that this was the real deal. Hell yeah, not scammed at all with any of these packages! He double checks the quality before tucking the item back into the box and sealing it once more. He didn't have anything to put the gifts in at the moment, so they have just been sitting under his bed for now. Having these items tucked out of the prying eyes of his mom did make him ask himself a few questions, however.

Was his plan bad?

Larry asked himself time and time again as he sauntered to the elevator with another box in his hands. Would his plan work at all? The two hadn't asked him to buy these things and lord knows that he probably should have gotten a second opinion from an outside source. In reality, he was just a little scared. He wanted a relationship with them both desperately, but he just had no fucking idea how to do that without hurting someone in the process.

Once more, he takes the box in his hands and pushes it under his bed. He's about to push his hair out of his face when he notices an orange blob on his palm. Yeah, don't get an orange streak in your hair. Orange..

Instead of going back to painting, he instead decides that there is a certain buddy upstairs he should talk to. He'll know what he should do.

As he makes his way over to the elevator and presses the button, he clicks for the second floor. Larry waits as the old elevator works it's way upwards and stops, only to reveal someone else on the other side. Surprisingly enough, it isn't Todd or one of the residents of the second floor. Instead, it's Sal.

The two blink at each other a moment and Larry slides his foot in front of the door to keep it from closing. For some reason, the air feels tense.

"Mornin'" Larry breaks through the small, uncomfortable silence, smiling at the other teen. "Funny how we both got the idea to talk to Todd today, huh?"

Sal slipped into the elevator and nodded, a small chuckle under his breath. "Yeah, just missed him is all. Wanted to know more about what they did on their trip, you know? What did you wanna chat about?"

Larry swallowed a lump in his throat and shoved his hands into his sweatpants pockets. "Something's been up with my computer, wanted him to take a look at it at some point to see what's up with it. I don't think it's a virus, but always better to check with the local geek." He hums, bouncing on his heels for a moment after retracting his foot from the door.

There is another small batch of silence as the doors clink shut, Sal pressing the button to the fourth floor. Larry watched the button light up and didn't press the button to the basement. He could stay in the elevator with Sal for a minute. He won't intrude into his apartment without asking, of course, but if he wanted to hang before work, he was fine with that.

Breaking the quiet hum of the elevator at the same time, both boys looked to one another and started to talk. They looked away, laughing after, before looking back and interrupting each other yet again.

"You go first." Larry chuckled softly, shaking his head.

"Alright- well.. I wanted to know if you wanted to.. I don't know. Go somewhere after work. Like a..." Sal fumbled with his hands a little, looking down at the stained carpet under his feet. "Like a date?"

Larry paused at that, staring down at the other. He felt heat rise to his cheeks and a nervous bubble filled his stomach. Sal wanted to go on a date with him. Him. It almost annoyed him that Sal had asked first and not himself, but the mild annoyance was drowned out by sheer excitement. But apparently, he had been quiet for too long, since Sal was looking directly at him with his eyes wide. 

"...Larry? It's- fine if it's a no?" 

"No! No- fuck-" He's quick to apologize, crouching down a little so he was level with Sal. "Fuck yeah dude, of course I would want to. Just caught me off guard is all!" Larry brushed some hair away from his ear, giving the bluenette a toothy grin. "I'd love to go on a date with you."

Sal lets out a breathy exhale and nods his head. Larry could see his eyes crinkle in a way that tells him he's smiling. "Cool, cool. So after work?"

"Sounds good to me, Sally Face."

The elevator dings and the door shimmies open with a creak. Sal says that he's excited and that he'll be seeing Larry in a bit to head to work. Before the doors creak shut, Sal blows him a fake kiss that makes Larry clutch at his chest when they fully shut. Jesus, he's just.. too cute.

Instead of going to Todd like his original plan, Larry goes back down to the basement to continue the painting process and question himself a little. Sal wanted to go on a date, that was good! That was a very very good thing. 

His painting efforts were fruitless. He was far too eager and nervous to hold the brush steady. One thing is certain; he's going on this date and he's bringing one of his gifts to Sal as well.

Hours pass and the afternoon comes and goes. Larry had spent his day attempting to get paint off his floor and to clean his room up since Lisa practically had demanded it. He had also picked out a nice date outfit to wear once he got off of work. No way in hell is he going to a date wearing his stupid 7/11 uniform. It was just blue jeans and a white shirt, really. Nothing actually dressy, but pretty much the nicest outfit he owned that didn't have paint or grease on it.

The two do their usual routine around four. Sal waits for him in the lobby, Larry drives him to work, then drops Sal off. There was another long pause of silence during the ride to the store, but Larry had just assumed they were both giddy for work to be over with. Lucky for him, it was an oddly busy Thursday night at the gas station. That meant Larry didn't have much time to be considering what they would be doing on their date and didn't have to get anxious over nothing.

That feeling didn't last forever, though.

As soon as he had clocked out and remembered to change into his date attire, the nervous pit in his stomach was back full swing. Fuck, what do people do on dates? He's seen enough rom-coms with his mom to know it's usually something cheesy and romantic. But what would Sal consider cheesy and romantic?

Driving back to Nockfell General, Larry pulled up to see Sal waiting for him. He couldn't help but smile at him as he pulled up, leaning back in his seat as he unlocked the doors. Sal hopped in and buckled up, opening his mouth to announce what they would be doing only to be interrupted.

"I have a really good idea. Y'know, to make this special." Larry's fingers drummed against the steering wheel, looking over to Sal.

"Oh- cool. What did you have in mind..?" There was a pause before Larry saw his eyebrows furrow. "Do not suggest sharing spaghetti like Lady and the Tramp."

Larry scoffed, "Oh fuck you! That was my idea!" 

The two laughed as Larry took his foot off the breaks and drove out of the parking lot. Instead of taking the usual way home, he went the opposite way.

"But what did you have in mind?" Sal asked, folding his hands and putting them on his lap.

"You'll see." Larry shot him a grin. "It'll be really nice, I promise."

The two drove to the very edge of Nockfell, the street lights long since disappearing as they drew closer and closer to the edge of the woods. The truck's headlights were the only thing lighting up the road in front of them as it went from pavement to uneven dirt. Larry had the perfect place alright, somewhere he and Sal hadn't been before but have been meaning to go to for a while now.

Parking next to an old tree, the truck idles with its head beams pointed towards large pieces of metal that went upwards. Larry had driven them to the old water tower that wasn't really used anymore. The gang had always wanted to go up there and see the town below, but never wanted to get caught as a result. Where else would be a perfect date place?

Snagging a flashlight from the glove box, along with secretly hiding Sal's present in his sweatshirt pocket, the two got out of the car and started towards the chain link fence. The two scaled it easily, snickering to themselves as they climbed up to the top. The metal was old and nearly rusted away in some parts, but they made sure to be careful while climbing up.

Sal got to the top first since he had climbed up first, looking over the view of the town. Larry had heard him gasp and instantly thought something had gone wrong, but he soon figured out why he had let out such a noise.

Nockfell was surprisingly pretty from this far up and at night.

The streets were barren and quiet, but the boys could see the street lights in their pretty rows along with homes with their porch lights on. The sky on the horizon was a dusty, dull pink. It was light pollution from the next town, but it was still a beautiful sight.

"It's.. really cool up here." Sal sounded softer than before, wind blowing through his blue locks.

"Ditto." Larry chuckled, looking over at him. "Isn't the perfect date, but I know you've wanted to come up here for a while. Feel a little tall."

Sal laughed along with him before fumbling with his hands. Reaching back behind his head, he undid the lower clasps of his prosthetic, then the upper ones. He held the prosthetic in his hands, cradling it gently. Larry couldn't help but stare as Sal enjoyed the soft breeze on his face.

Fuck, he was so cute.

They stayed up there for a good hour, just talking to one another while swinging their legs off the side of the water tower. The whole time they had been talking, Larry had tried to give Sal his present. He just couldn't muster up the courage! What if he hated it? What if he hated him? Maybe this wasn't a good idea, getting these things from ebay.

But he was determined to see it through.

When the two teens finally decided to climb down and drive back home, Larry was anxious as he got all the way back to the apartments. They got out of the car, went into the building, and got into the elevator. 

C'mon.. now's your only chance!

"Sal-" He finally spoke up. He felt his own voice sounded strange, almost alien. Goddamn, he was such a nervous wreck. He cleared his throat and pressed the basement key. "I had a really fun time tonight."

Sal looked up to him, prosthetic back on his face. Despite the mask being back on, Larry could see him beam up at him. "I had a fun time, too. I'm really glad we did this."

"I am too," Larry agreed. He swallowed the lump in his throat before taking out the box he had shoved in his pocket. It was a little too big, but he's glad it didn't fall out at all climbing up and down the water tower. "I got you a little something."

"Oh-" Sal looked at the box that was being offered, taking it just as the elevator door dinged open to the basement level. He started to open it, but Larry stopped his hands.

"Don't!- Don't.. right now, heh. Open it when you get up to your place, okay?" He could feel the cold sweat rising on his forehead now, the anxiety building up inside of him.

"Gotcha." Sal agreed. "Well, night Larry. Thank you for the gift and-"

Sal didn't get a chance to continue, caught off guard with a quick kiss to his prosthetic's cheek and Larry heading out the doors before they shut. 

Larry stood on the other side of the doors, feeling like he couldn't breathe for a moment. He might have just fucked up the chance for a second date. Or a friendship as a whole.

While on the other side of the doors and making his way upwards, Sal opened the box.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i.. wow. i did not expect so many people to like this fic. ive been writing this for a full year now (yes, the day im uploading is the one year anniversary). we've been through the shit together, haven't we? you guys watched my old laptop break and even helped me find a new one. We've been through quarantine together in a sense. I think this is also the first *thing* i've ever done that I have kept consistent (updating each month). I just wanted to say thank you to those who have been leaving awesome comments or just saying how you're excited for the next chapter to come out. It means a lot to me! Drawing had always been my main outlet, but I'm glad that you guys also like how I write as well.
> 
> Special announcement: if anyone has any questions on this fic/au, feel free to leave a comment below. For the special one-year anniversary, I will be putting these questions on a new chapter titled FAQ! That chapter will be posted next month alongside chapter 13. Any questions are welcome! You can comment here or leave an anon ask on my tumblr if you're shy.


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